Beau
by xXxRainbowxXxStarxXx
Summary: Beau can mean a million things. In France, it means Beautiful. For some people, it means a sweetheart or lover. And I was exactly that to one man of Easy Company. Shame I had to die before I could meet him.
1. Beau

_**Beau.**  
_

Okay guys, I am back! I know I write way too many stories for Band of Brothers, so I'm working on putting some more chapters in for my Murdoch Mysteries story, and I'm starting a rough draft of a story for the Pacific, but I wouldn't expect anything before Christmas...

I don't own anything, just my story, and the image is of Margaret Sullavan, because in my head, she looks like my character.

Aaaaanyway, read, enjoy (hopefully) and review!

* * *

_As I lay, dying in the freezing cold, I saw my life flash before me. My best times, my worst times all fluttered by in my mind._

_Blood dripped from my nose and mouth. It gushed out of my chest, and around the splinters that protruded. My breathing became raspy and I knew I was going to die._

_I was going to die, in a strange place, in a whole other world, with my head on the lap of someone I'd known for mere months, surrounded by the faces of those I'd know only a few years. I knew I was going to die for real this time._

_I could feel my eyes slip, as Doc Roe picked the splinters and chunks of wood out of my body._

"_I never thought I'd die twice..."_

"_We never thought you'd make it up that damn mountain when you just turned up at Toccoa, but you did. Yo can make it through dis too." Roe panicked, as I coughed blood up once again on to Hoob's arm, as he was slapping my face trying to keep my eyes open. I remembered my old life, as Johnny put me on the front of a jeep, before everything faded into darkness._

* * *

**You know, dying really does inconvenience you. I mean, one minute, you're doing all the things you like, with the people you love, the next minute, you wake up in a whole other world, with strange faces, and you haven't even been thought about being made yet.**

* * *

"Molly-Anne Beauclaire, hurry up or we go'n be late god-dammit!" My Southern mother shouted me from the bottom of the stairs.

"I coming mum!" I called back, hurrying out of my bedroom, almost tripping over the wrap I had with my dress and my large bag. We were in Louisiana for my cousin's wedding and we were going to be late if I didn't get my bum moving, and we couldn't afford that because we had to catch a flight home right after, so I'd have to bring my bag with my make up and stuff like that in it with me. I had to wear my grandmother's dress from when she was a kid, because my family insisted on wearing old stuff to every important event in our lives. My dad, a Shropshire born author, was waiting in the car and my mum was outside the door.

"C'mown honey, we go'n be late!"

I rushed out of the house, across the road to my dad waiting in the car. But I didn't see the car coming down the road. The last thing I heard was my mother screaming my name, as I tumbled into oblivion.

* * *

"Hey Doc, you think she's okay?" someone said. I cracked open my eyes and everything was wobbly, so I shut them again. Even the words sounded bleary.

"Yeah, I think, looks like she's go'n ta'ha' a real bad headache though." another voice replied, as my vision started to clear.

"Ohh, that's the last time I go to a fucking wedding." I groaned, lifting myself up off of the itchy wool beneath me. Rubbing my eyes and gazing at the curious faces, I knew I wasn't in the hospital. The room smelt of men and sweat, and I knew I was the only girl there without opening my eyes.

"Are you alright miss?" another voice asked. I opened my eyes once more and found myself face to face with a tall, red-headed man.

"Uh. Nope. I don't think so..." I replied holding my head.

"Ma'am how did you get here."

"How should I know? I didn't even see the car that hit me..." and then it dawned on me. "Holy crap on a cracker, I'm freaking dead!"

The three men in the room with me, shared a look of utter disbelief.

"Come again ma'am?" the first voice asked. I turned to the man it came from. He was taller than me, but not taller than the red-head. He had brown hair, a cigarette between his teeth and a worried look on his face.

"I was going to a wedding... and I got hit by a car.."

"You were getting married? You look kinda young.." He asked, still frowning.

"No you idiot, I'm 17!"

"Oh... so.. you got hit by a car?" he asked.

"Yeah... I know it's strange... but its true..."

The three men nodded and I stood up.

"So... where am I anyway?"

"Camp Toccoa ma'am."

I frowned. Toccoa? I'd only heard that name in my books and one of my dad's dvds. Easy company had trained there before they went to war. And that was in 1942.

"Oh my sweet baby Jesus... I died and ended up 70 years in the past..." my eyes opened wide at the three men stood before me. The three men looked at me like I'd just run over a puppy.

"Now ma'am I don't think that's possible..."

"It's the truth I swear!" I protested strongly. "My name is Molly-Anne Beauclaire, I was born in Shropshire, England in 1994 to Martha Mary Beauclaire and Jonathan Wilkinson, and I am not a liar."

The red-head looked at me with a thoughtful look, before shouting outside caught his attention. The two other men winced at the yells, and gave me one last look before they left the cabin.

"You should stay here. I'll figure something out for you." he said kindly, turning to leave.

"Wait! Why can't I stay with you? I mean, I can help out I guess.. my mum was a doctor." I pleaded, standing up at the side of the bed. He looked me over, thinking and that's when he tossed me a small uniform from the corner of the room. He said he'd wait outside while I changed.

The uniform was a little too big for me. I had to roll it up on the arms for it to fit me properly. I walked out and met the red-head again.

"What do you know?"

"The basics... I know all the bones.. the arteries, where to find the veins in the arms... how to dress different wounds..."

"You'll do as a medic then. You're 17 right?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think you're a little... young?"

"Well I know that and you know that, but they don't." I replied, nodding to the men stood smartly in their ranks.

He smiled slightly, and told me to stand behind him.

"My name is Richard Winters, by the way. Call me Dick... I'll go talk to Sink later, to see if you can stay with the company." he smiled before he turned around to face the front.

* * *

I could feel all the eyes on me, and I hoped that no one would say anything. But I could hear someone whispering to my left. Another red-headed soldier was talking to his friend in front of him, looking at me a lot.

"Hey, Skip, what's a girl doing here?"

"How the hell should I know Don... I heard Luz and Doc Roe brought a kid back from the woods earlier... maybe that's her." the guy addressed as Skip replied.

"Oi, I can hear everything you're fucking saying. Learn how to whisper arse-holes." I hissed glaring at them. The guys around me looked shocked, that such a small young thing could use language like that.

"17 years old with language worse than Liebgott, Jesus Christ." the first guy in the hut with me said.

"Get used to it. I'm your new medic."

Before they had a chance to react, a shout pierce through the air.

"You people are at the position of attention!"

Oh Lord this guy was so anal! I winced as he went by everyone, criticizing their equipment, although I couldn't personally see anything wrong with it.

"Private Perconte, have you been blousing your trousers over your boots like a paratrooper?"

The soldier said no.

"Then how do you explain the creases on the bottom of your trousers?"

I could see the guys brain turning, before he finally replied, "No excuse sir."

He carried on his little rant, until he came to me.

"Name!"

"Beauclaire, Molly-Anne."

"What is a girl doing in my company?"

He bent his head closer to me, our noses now touching.

"I'm the new medic sir."

The guy sneered at me. This must have been captain Sobel. Arse-hole extroadinare. He looked me up and down, raving on about Currahee and how I'd never make it up the mountain.

I leant to the side, so I could see the mountain behind him. Oh holy crap.

"I think I can make it sir." that was a lie. But he didn't know.

He moved off, and went on about how he wouldn't take any of us to war. Then he said we were running Currahee.

* * *

"Second Platoon fall out!" Dick shouted, "Molly-Anne! Hoobler!"

"Sir?" I said, standing nervously. Another soldier waited by my side.

"Yes sir?" he asked. He was tall, and had a sweet accent that reminded me of my mum.

"Hoobler, I want you to look out for Private Beauclaire here."

The soldier called Hoobler studied me for a moment, before he beckoned me to follow him.

"So, you're the medic, huh?" he quizzed, uneasily.

"Yeah..." I replied, just as uneasily.

"What was your first name again?"

"Molly-Anne... What's yours?"

"Donald. Donald Brenton Hoobler, but everyone calls me Hoob."

I smiled at him, to try and relieve the tension between the two of us.

"That's a nice name."

He half scowled at me, not knowing what to make of me.

"Hey, there's no need to look at me like that... I was just trying to be friendly..." I replied with a scowl of my own.

"Private Beauclaire! Here! Now!" Sobel screeched at me. I trotted over to Sobel with a grimace. I thought Hoobler would have gone ahead without me, but he waited around, out of Sobel's sight.

"Sir?"

"How old are you Beauclaire?" he demanded.

"Uh.. 17 sir."

"You're jail-bait Beauclaire, and if I catch you trying to mess around with my men, you'll have hell to pay."

"Sir I wouldn't dream of going near your men, I'm mature enough to-"

His hand connected to the side of my cheek with a sickening noise. It was so sudden, forceful and unexpected, that it knocked me to the floor. I could feel my hot blood snake down my lip, as my cheek swelled and bruised.

"You're a child. And if you so much as act in a manner I don't like to think of the consequences. Now get up and change into your P.T gear."

I scrambled to my feet with a 'yes sir', hurrying in the general direction of where Hoobler was. My cheeks burnt, not helping the fact that my left cheek ached from the slap I'd gotten. I sucked on my bottom lip, not wanting anyone to see the blood. Hoobler seemed to have noticed something was wrong with me, probably seeing the tears beginning to well in my eyes. But he didn't say anything. I though it was because he didn't really want to be friendly with me.

* * *

"Hey Hoob, where you been?" one guy called, as we both entered the room. It went a little quiet as I stepped in behind him.

"I got told to look out for Beau' here."

Beau? I though, looking behind me.

"You, you idiot..." he told me, suppressing a chuckle and smile, as he pushed me into the room.

"But that's not my name..."

"Beauclaire's too long." he pushed me over to a bed in the corner of the room. "This is my bed, so I'll be here to keep an eye on you."

"What for? I'm jail-bait, no point in me trying to sneak out to see someone..." I muttered, trying to keep it under my breath.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Don't lie kid."

"I said, I'm jail bait, okay?" I replied, chewing the busted part of my lip harder. He didn't push me further, which I was very thankful for. Over in the corner, I saw the two guys who'd been talking about me earlier.

"Your name's Molly-Anne, right?" I nodded.

"Well Molly-Anne, welcome to Toccoa... eh.. sorry about earlier..." the red-head introduced himself as Don Malarkey. He shook my hand, before he left the hut to join the rest of Easy company. I was a little nervous about changing in front of all these older guys, and Hoobler who had an eye for people with discomforts, stood with his back to my back, so no one could see me. Maybe this guy was okay after all.

"You done changing Beau?"

"Yup." I replied, walking in front of him. Thankfully, the P.T uniform was loose, so no one would quite see anything.

"Good. Come on."

Almost as quickly as he had become friendlier to me, he became hostile again. I sighed, thinking I'd never make a friend here. I despaired at the thought of going through this alone, wishing I'd never pleaded with Dick to let me stay.

* * *

The moment I set foot at the bottom of Currahee mountain I groaned, thinking how much of an idiot I'd been in saying I'd make it up.

"I'm going to die..." I breathed, defeated even before I'd got anywhere near the top.

"Just don't think about it." Another Southern voice said from beside me. I knew it wasn't Hoobler, because he wasn't going to be friendly with me, and he was on the wrong side of where the voice came from.

The voice was softer, sweeter and kinder than the other guys, although Malarkey, from when I heard him talk seemed okay. Looking to my right, I set my eyes upon a sweet looking guy, with tanned skin and dark brown hair, with hazel eyes.

"It's kinda hard not to..." I moped, like the mardy teen I was.

"Well, if it helps just hum along to a song you like... it's how I get through."

I smiled at the man, who introduced himself as Darrell C. Powers. Or Shifty, as the guys called him.

"I'm Molly-Anne." I gasped, pushing myself up the mountain.

Suddenly, Sobel began hollering things, horrible things to people. God knows why. He quickly moved to me.

"Beauclaire, get your jail-bait backside to the front, or I will personally throw you out of the Airborne! You aren't fit to be here! You don't deserve to be here!"

I bit my lip, the pain coming back to my cheek as he raved at me. But I pushed and pushed myself, and soon enough, I was at the front of the company, putting a great distance between me and the men. I wasn't going to let him think I shouldn't be there.

I swallowed hard, biting back all the sick that I wanted to throw up from the sudden pick up in my pace. Sobel continued to hound me all the way up, much to my dismay. I dug my nails deep into the palms of my hands, drawing blood. I didn't care, it helped me block out the yells of 'whore' and other colourful words he found to call me.

When I got to the bottom of the mountain, I thought I was going to die. Again. I wheezed my way back to the billet I was in, trailing after some of the other guys who were in the same hut. Someone appeared at my side, but I was too knackered to look up and see who it was.

"How'd you get that nasty bruise?"

"Do you really care, or are you just worried that you'll get a bollocking for not watching out for me?" I gasped for air, as I neared the hut, Hoobler by my side.

"What makes you think that?"

"Well one minute you're okay, then the next, it's like I'm the worst person on the planet."

I looked up at the older man, as he scowled at me, again.

"See, there it is again. The look." I sighed.

Reaching the billet, the room became, once again, almost silent, save a few voices, muttering and occasionally looking at me. Hoobler once again, shielded me from view and I changed back into my original clothes. Some of the guys scowled at me, as I picked up my things from my time and made my way to the door.

"Where are you going?" Don asked, putting his shirt on.

"I know when I'm not wanted. Good luck... you're going to need it later."


	2. Awkward Underwear

**Awkward Underwear**

* * *

Stepping outside, into the fresh Georgian air, I made my way down the walk way, my small bag over my shoulder.

A couple of minutes later, I heard gravel crunching behind me, in a way that said someone was running. I didn't look back, but I moved to the side as the runner got closer. But they didn't pass me. Instead, they came up beside me.

"Hey, kid! Kid! Beau, c'mon wait up!" Hoobler called as he got closer to me.

"I told you, I'm not staying where I'm not wanted..." I replied harshly, carrying on walking.

"Look, we're sorry.. we're just... concerned."

"At what? That I won't make it up past the mountain?"

"No, we're worried that you won't cope with Sobel."

"I can cope with him just fine!"

"So, you're telling me you, a 17 year old girl, can cope with that asshole calling you a whore and jail-bait, every day?" he argued, standing in front of me so I couldn't keep going in the direction I wanted to. "Come on Beau..."

"Well where else can I go? I'm not going to a foster home or an orphanage... if I want to stay, then I'll stay... anyway, I'm not afraid of the big bad wolf."

Hoobler shook his head at me, as it began to drizzle with rain above us.

"Well, if you're staying, you'll need a shower.. and you'll need to change back into your OD's."

I smiled at the man in front of me, "See, talking to you is much better when you're being friendly."

"I'm 19, I don't do friendly."

"Well I'm 17, I don't do 'no'." I shot back, sticking my tongue out at him. He smirked, turning me around and pushing me back to the billet.

* * *

"Look who came back fellas!" Don smiled, as I followed Hoobler back into the hut.

"Just shows she's tough." Skip smiled too.

"Um, thanks... I guess..." I thanked them, uneasily, seeing as not long ago, they were questioning my being here. I quickly changed, my human shield standing in the way of prying eyes once again.

Later that night, Easy Company was subjected to a late night march in the pouring rain. I was told to walk at the front. I was next to a man called Roy Cobb and a man called Johnny Martin.

I could hear Cobb complain under his breath, cursing the army for sending him to the Airborne.

"Oh lighten up Cobb, things could be worse! You could have been years ago and been sent to Paschandale." I told him, heaving the mortar base plate from under one arm, to the other.

The two gave me a look, while Hoobler, who was behind me, patted me on the head, whispering, "Way to be optimistic Beau."

I smiled, not really caring what the two beside me thought.

"Paschandale?"

"Yeah... I saw a film about it once... I think I threw up all night... but that might have been something to do the food poisoning I had... I tell you, it's the last time I eat shrimp gumbo in Louisiana..."

"Nice Beau, really nice." he whispered again. I snorted.

"You know Sunny, you're a real optimist." Johnny told me, with a crooked smile.

"I know. I do try my best."

* * *

Over the next few weeks, the guys gradually acknowledged me more, letting me become a part of the 'brotherhood'. Colonel Sink said I could stay on as a medic, which didn't impress Sobel very much. He did cut us some slack at Thanksgiving, though. He let us actually have the day off with the rest of the 101st.

After a thoroughly decent meal, the guys gathered in our hut, to just chill out. George Luz, who was one of the first people I met in Toccoa, was telling jokes and making everyone laugh, when the subject turned rude. Not that I minded of course, I was used to the subject.

"Hey, hey, we've got a young lady here!" Don cried, throwing his arm around me.

"What you think I never heard this kind of stuff before? Dude, seriously, I could tell you things that would make Joe blush."

"You're kidding right?" Don asked, a little shocked.

"Nope, I'm worse than Joe. Seriously."

"But.. you're just a kid!"

"I, uh, went a little of the rails when I got to 14..."

"14!"

"Yeah... hey, things are different where I come from! And anyway, I'm not like that any more." I said, getting up and going to the door.

"Where you going?" Skip questioned.

"For a walk... Hey, I turn 18 today, so I can't be called jail-bait any more... not that I could be called that in the first place, the legal age here is 16... Sobel's from Illinois, and the legal age there is 18.." I debated to myself as the guys stared at me, watching me leave the cabin.

* * *

The brisk air quickly reddened my cheeks, highlighting my naturally deep copper hair and pale skin. In the months that I'd been there, my hair had gown out, so my natural gingerness had come out. I wasn't happy about it. Being ginger. I longed for the dark black hair my mother and grandmother had, and now that my hair had grown, the black dye was at the bottom and my ginger roots came just about to my ear, it looked like burning coal. It would take forever for my hair to turn fully ginger again, so I'd have to walk around like that for a while.

I turned a corner, not looking where I was going and walked right into Sobel. He didn't even look at me, he just grabbed me by the pony tail, and dragged me along to solitary confinement, a punishment devised just for me. I hated it, and he knew that. I had been subjected to this torture a few times before. He threw me on to the floor in the small, box of a room, before slamming and locking the door.

I dragged myself into a corner and quietly cried. I regretted ever joining the paratroopers, I wished I'd never begged Dick to let me stay. This was the worst day of my life.

I didn't know how long I was in confinement for, but I was in luck. I heard footsteps outside the door and I jumped up in hopes someone would come and let me out. Boy was I in luck.

* * *

Chuck Grant and Walter Gordon were stood outside my door, observed by Sobel.

"Colonel Sink wants to see you. These two men will escort you." he growled as I came out of the room, tear streaks still visible on my face.

As we got away from Sobel, Chuck hugged me.

"I didn't think that's where he put you..."

I nodded into his chest, relieved to be out of the horrible dank and dark room.

"Yeah... on my birthday too..."

"We don't believe it... we heard from Malark that it was your birthday... what an asshole!" Smokey shook his head.

Smokey and Chuck waited for me outside Sink's office, as I was called in as soon as I got there.

* * *

"Afternoon sir." I greeted, standing to attention and saluting.

"Afternoon Miss Beauclaire. Well at ease." he walked around his desk and stood before me.

"Miss Beauclaire, I have noticed some incredible changes in you these past few months. You've excelled in medic training and just by looking at you I'd say you could drop a bear or two with a few hits on the nose. Now I am mighty proud of you, I hate to think I was going to send you to an orphanage or foster home."

"Thank you for letting me stay here sir. I won't let you down sir."

The old Colonel smiled at me, "I'm sure you won't Miss Beauclaire. Now in light of this, and because it is your birthday and Thanksgiving, you are going into town with Captain Penwarden from the nursing Corps. She's going to help you pick out a dress."

"Sir?! But... what for?"

"Because I have asked you to. Consider it praise for being a damn fine soldier and medic."

"Thank you sir..." I said slowly, not really believing what he was saying. We saluted each other and then I left.

When my two friends heard what he'd said, they were just as stunned as I was.

* * *

I've never been in a more awkward situation than I was with Captain Penwarden. First she took me to get my dress, which wasn't bad at all. It took me ten minutes to find a dress, I had a nose for a bargain. It was cornflower blue, with little white flowers all over it. We got some white low heels to go with them.

Now, came the awkward part. She'd decided that I need extra underwear... and now that I was more or less old enough, I should have stockings too.

I could have died when the sales assistant took all of my measurements and said them out loud. I'd always been a.. erm... busty girl. I had curves like Marilyn Monroe, and boy did people notice.

So it wasn't going to help me, if I had a fucking corset... yep.. Awkward. I hadn't a clue what I needed one for, but Penwarden insisted.

I went to town for a dress and I came back with underwear...and stockings, suspender belt and suspenders. And a corset... that was going to go down well with the boys.

I snook in while they were playing craps, hiding my bag behind my back.

* * *

"What's in the bag Sunny?" Smokey asked, eyeing the bag. I swore under my breath, he had hawk eyes, that was for sure.

"Nothing Smokey." I lied horribly.

"You can't lie to us Sunny, you're a horrible liar." Skip forwarded, not looking up from the on going game in the corner.

"And you're just horrible. I don't have to tell you what's in this bag."

"How come you're all protective over it now then?" Smokey quizzed, heaving himself up off of his bed.

"Because I am! Leave me alone!" I whined, twisting around so he couldn't see what was in the bag of awkwardness.

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad!" Alex Penkala smiled.

"Oh it is. It's a bag of awkwardness! You don't want to know what's in it and to he honest, I wish I didn't..."

"Sunny, we'll find out one way or another..."

"Stop asking me awkward questions... it's my birthday, you're supposed to be being extra nice to me you bunch of gits." I protested, shoving the bag under the floor boards under my bed, where I kept the rest of my contraband.

"What is it panties or something?" Joe Liebgott asked bluntly. I blushed and scratched the back of me head.

"No... possibly... more or less...guys pleeeease can we just drop this already?"

"Ohh fine!" Skip grumbled pretending to be annoyed. I smiled and hugged him. "Hey, easy there, what are trying to do, choke me to death?"

I giggled, "Sorry Skip... hey has anyone seen Hoob? He said to go see him when I came back."

"I think he went off to find George or something." Alex replied pointing to the door.

"Thanks Al." I threw him a smile, before I hoped out of the door.

"I hate it when you call me that." he called to me, but I ignored him. He was like a big brother I loved to torment. I did exactly the same to Joe Liebgott and Roy Cobb, only Alex had a little more patience.

* * *

I walked around for what seemed like ages, before I finally found Hoob. He was sat smoking, watching the obstacle course like a lioness watches her prey. I stared at him for a while, trying to think of a way to surprise him, but as I looked closer, it looked like he didn't want to be surprised, so I walked over to him.

"Hoob."

No reply.

"Hooooooob?" I said again, standing a little closer to him. I could see his eyes focussed in a glassy stare. Waving my hand in front of his face got no reaction either.

"Donald Brenton Hoobler. Earth to Donald Brenton Hoobler!" I called, cupping my hands around my mouth. I nudged him, trying to get his attention, starting to worry. I frowned, sticking my hand on his neck to feel his pulse. His pulse soared and he jumped out of his skin.

"Jesus Molly-Anne!" he yelped, recoiling from my touch. "What the hell were you doing?"

"I was worried, I've been stood here for 10 minutes and you didn't move..."

"God-damn kid! I was thinking! You know how hard it is to get a minute on your own?"

I recoiled at the sharpness of his words.

"I didn't mean to... you told me to come find you when I came back...how was I supposed to know you wanted to be alone..."

I stepped away. It was like when I first started out. He was hostile and cold, and I didn't know what I'd done.

"Grow up Molly-Anne. This isn't a game for kids."

My stomach sank, as my best friend gave me the could shoulder.

"I know that! What did I do this time, huh Hoobler? You always look at me like I shot your dog! What did I ever do to you?"

I wanted to hit him so badly it hurt. So I did. I punched him square in the jaw and left him sulk on his own.

The lads were going out later, and I just caught them before they left.

"Can I... can I come out with you guys?" I asked timidly. They looked at each other, but allowed me to come too anyway.

* * *

I sat in a corner, quietly sipping on a bottle of coca-cola, while the guys all laughed and joked. I wanted to go home so badly. To my family, to the ones who loved me, who wouldn't be total arse-holes with me just because they felt like it.

I sighed, fiddling with the straw in the bottle. I felt someone sit next to me, and looking up, it was someone I'd never seen before.

The alcohol on his breath made me wince, it was so pungent it made me recoil. He gave me a drunken leer, and came closer to me.

"Hey babe."

"Er.."

"Was you name?" he hiccuped.

"I'd rather not tell you..."

"Oh, playing hard to get?" he smirked as I stood up.

"No, I'd just rather not tell you my name."

His expression changed to that of a darker look. It made me feel sick, and I hurried over to Malarkey's table.

"How is our little birthday girl huh?" He asked, giving me a hug as he walked to the bar.

"Er, yeah I'm good.. I'm going to get off now.. I'll see you in the morning, don't get too drunk!"

I stepped out and started walking down the road, on my way back to base. I could hear someone walking behind me. I picked up my pace, hugging myself as I looked back behind me. The guy from the bar was following me. And he'd picked up his pace too. Pretty soon I was running, and he was chasing after me. He was too fast for me, and tackled me to the ground and pinned me under him. I cried out for help, but no one could hear me. I struggled viciously underneath him but he was far too strong for me. He forced his mouth on me, knocking our teeth together, and forcing his tongue down my throat. I prayed that this Hell would end.


	3. Stuck

**Stuck**

* * *

I was filled with horror, as the man above me laughed at my cries for help.

"Think you're clever huh? Playing hard to get, huh?"

"Let go of me!" I yelled, trying to kick him.

He just laughed, and began to rip at my shirt.

Suddenly, someone appeared behind him.

"The hell you think you're doing!" I heard the guy growl, in the familiar drawl that I had come to love. Before the guy even had a chance to turn around, the other guy lamped him in the side of the head. He crumpled on the floor next to me, and I didn't miss my chance to escape.

I pelted away down the road, listening to the scuffle fade away.

Stopping behind a tree, where I could see the base about 3 miles away. I caught my breath, waiting and listening for someone, anyone.

Then I could hear the gravel crunching slowly, up the road.

"Who's there?" I breathed, pressing myself against the trunk, as the footsteps came closer.

"Beau?"

"Hoob!" I gasped, pushing myself away from the tree. I threw my arms around his neck.

"Beau, are you okay?" he asked softly, pushing me away so he could look at me. I wish he'd not asked. I burst into tears, throwing my hands up to my face.

"No! I thought he was..."

"I would never have let him, don't you worry about that Beau." he pulled me close to him, stroking my hair. He held me close as we walked back.

* * *

When we got into our billet, I just sat on my bed. My jacket was ripped slightly at the collar, and my lips were a little red. I couldn't get his taste out of my mouth, the feel of him laid over me. I went to the loo and stared at myself in the mirror, thinking about what could have happened if Hoob hadn't come along. I felt sick to my stomach and I couldn't stop the urge to be sick. I hurled everything I had in me, into the toilet, tears pricking my eyes like they did when I usually threw up.

"Beau?" he asked, standing at the door as I brushed my teeth.

"I can't get him off me." I tried to smile, but it failed miserably.

"Beau, baby come here." I looked at him meekly as he opened his arms.

"Did you just call me baby?"

"Uh. Yeah.. I guess..." he replied, as I snuggled into his chest by the toilet door. "Come on, you should sleep."

He guided me over to his bed, and he laid down next to me. I guess it was so I could cuddle him. He pressed his chin into my hair and whispered some comforting words to me, as I sniffled quietly.

"Hoob, I'm sorry I punched you today."

"Don't worry about it sweetie... I'm sorry I was so mean to you..."

"You saved me tonight.."

"And one day you'll do the same for me."

I couldn't help but hope that I'd never have to fix him up, and I fell into an uneasy and perturbed sleep.

* * *

I'd had nightmares all night that night, and when I was woken up in the morning I had a heart attack. I was still bleary eyed and I was woken up to just a silhouette standing at the bottom of my bed. Before I could even think about who it was, I lashed out and hit them in the jaw. I sent the silhouette sprawling on the floor.

"Holy SHIT! Sunny!" Joe Toye's raspy voice groaned from the floor. I leapt out of my cot, throwing myself to his side.

"Oh my God, Joey I'm so sorry, I thought you were the guy from last night!" I cried, flapping about around his busted lip.

"What guy?" he asked, slapping my hands away gently.

"I had a run in with a drunk guy... Hoob, erm.. rescued me..." I blushed, fiddling with my torn collar and looked around at Hoob, who was sat on his bed, tying his boots up. He paused and looked round, throwing me a wink and I blushed even more and turned around quickly.

"Joey I am sorry! I really didn't mean to hit you.."

"Don't worry about it, it wasn't your fault." he replied, rubbing his mouth. "That's one hell of right hook you got there Sunny."

"Thanks Joey." I leant back against my bed, before stumbling over my shoes. "Oh, that's where they are."

* * *

Most of the guys stumbled along to the mess hall, after a night of drinking, they all looked like hell. I walked slowly, not quite feeling myself after last night.

"You're birthday wasn't too great huh?" Hoob tried to joke. I smiled weakly.

"Yeah, it sucked..."

"Well, don't worry, next year, it'll be better baby."

"There you go again with the baby thing... is it cause I'm the youngest?"

"No.. I just.. I dunno.."

He slowed down, and so did I. I was wondering what was wrong with him. By now we'd come to a complete stop. He was just looking at me, with a puzzled look on his face.

"It was too late to buy you a birthday present, so I hope this will do."

"Hoob, what-"

I couldn't ask him what he was on about, because he grabbed my face with both hands and planted one, right on my mouth. With all the suddenness that he'd kissed me with, he broke away and blushed.

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have... did I mention I was sorry?"

"Hoobler..." I blushed too and rubbed my forehead.

"I should... I should go.."

* * *

The two of us didn't speak to each other for months. It took us until the end of jump training to even really look at each other and say morning. And during that time, I'd gotten closer to Don and Eugene Roe the other medic.

* * *

_And, as I lay, bloodied and broken, in the arms of Renee, Gene and Hoob, I remembered the day we graduated jump school, as being one of the best days of my life. I smiled weakly, barely knowing where I was. I could feel the strangest things, but I suppose that was because of blood loss and that Gene and Renee were trying to stop me from bleeding to death._

"_Hoobler go wait outside, we'll tell yo what happens." _

"_I'm not leaving her."_

"_It's not for 'er. Eet is for you." I heard the faint voice of Renee tell Hoob. I used the last of my strength to raise my arm, just slightly, and grasp his little finger and ring finger._

"_I promised I'd not leave you... will you forgive me if I go away now and you.. you die?"_

"_Yes.." I felt myself breathe. His chapped lips met my bloodied ones, and his footsteps, as well as everything else, faded once again to darkness and silence. Once again, my life played out before me, and all I could focus on was the jump wings ceremony._

* * *

"Don I am so excited! I could cartwheel all over the place!" I grinned jigging my legs as we stood waiting for our jump wings to be pinned on. Colonel Sink came over to me and Don last.

I stood proudly before the Colonel, as he pinned on the silver badge.

"You've done me proud Beauclaire. Keep it up little lady." he smiled.

"Yes sir, thank you sir."

As soon as we got back to our billet, (we had a few hours free before our party in the evening) I went wild. I was so proud of everyone and myself, I couldn't calm down. I was so excited.

"Oh my god... Sunny, what the hell have you been drinking?" Don snorted as I jumped from bed to bed.

"I can't help it!" I laughed, diving on his back. "High Ho Silver!"

"I'm not a fucking horse!" he laughed too, whirling me around. He set me down and I wobbled that much, I lost my balance and fell over a bed... right into Hoob's lap. I blushed, and so did he, and the silly feeling I got when he first kissed me came back.

"Nice of you to drop in." he smirked. I blushed a little more, when I caught his gaze lingering on my lips. Don helped me to my feet and I grabbed some things from under the floor boards under my bed.

"Where are you going?" Don asked as I walked out of the door with my little bag.

"To find Shifty."

* * *

Shifty, was like the right side of my body. Without my southern soldier boy, I couldn't function. I knocked on the door to his hut, and Georgie called me in.

"Sunny! How about that gentlemen! You hear us talking about you?" he grinned, throwing his arm around me.

"Oh, you were talking about me?" I asked, mock offended.

"Yeah, we were wondering why you and Hoob don't talk no more." Floyd Talbert answered, lighting up a cigarette.

"Oh.. well.. because.."

Georgie grinned, excited at the prospect of some juicy gossip.

"Because what Molly-Anne Beauclaire?" he smirked, tightening his grip around me so I couldn't go any where.

"Well... he kissed me once."

The boys all stopped what they were doing and looked at me, like I'd just arrived at Toccoa all over again.

"He... kissed you..." Floyd asked me, putting out his cig.

"Yeah... once..." I went bright red. "So what?"

"So nothing, you could have mentioned it to one of us though." Don told me from behind. He handed me a small box and leant against the door.

"Yeah.. but what was I meant to do? I didn't know what to say and neither did he... why are you interrogating me anyway! I only wanted to talk to Shifty... wait, what's this for?" I questioned now, looking at the box in my hand. Don told me to open it and I did.

Inside was a hibiscus flower hair clip. It wasn't real; it was made from silk, and the colour matched my cornflower blue dress I was going to wear to the party.

"What-"

"Consider it a late birthday present. We all chipped in, we know how much you like those flowers."

I smiled and hugged them all one by one, "I love you guys... you're like... I dunno... what I'd do without you, is only a guess."

"Well little sis, you certainly cheer us up." Georgie smiled patting me on the back. "So, you wanted Shifty? Hey Shift, c'mere!"

* * *

Shifty trotted over like a loyal dog, and as soon as I had asked, he'd sat me on his bed and started to do my hair. I first found out about his incredible ability to make hair look decent, when I was struggling with the knots in my hair a few months back. He'd done his mother's hair for her when she used to go out and he agreed to do mine too. I asked for victory rolls, as they had always been my favourite. It didn't take him long to put them in, and behind the roll on the left side of my head, he slid in the hibiscus clip. I looked in the mirror and applied my make-up. But I couldn't help but see how much I had grown.

I wasn't the wiry little kid with the curves any more. I was the tall girl, a full five inches taller than what I had been, 5foot when I first got here. I was stronger, more built up, with toned stomach and leg muscles. My whole appearance had changed. I was growing up and the boys had noticed it too. On more than one occasion, I had caught Floyd staring at my behind as I leant over the table to show Hoob or Don something at dinner.

The dress I had bought last year, which had never been worn before, was somewhat of a tighter fit around my chest and hips, showing off more of my curves than I would have liked.

The lads.. well they didn't seem to mind at all. Obviously.

I'd pinned my jump wings to the front of my dress, and I thought I catch hell from Sink because I wasn't in uniform. So imagine my surprise when he announced how nice I looked in the middle of his speech.

* * *

"Miss Beauclaire, the dress suits you." I blushed, dipping my head for a moment.

"Thank you sir, I thought it would make a change, sir."

"A welcome one it is too. Now y'all deserve this party and remember out motto: CURRAHEE!"

I smiled and turned around just in time to bump into Joey. He smirked drunkenly at me, patting my back.

"So, kissing with Hoobler huh?"

I blushed and glared at Georgie, "Did you tell him?" he nodded, "Oh for Pete's sake! Why can't you keep a secret? Yes Joey I did, last year, I might add and I haven't since."

He slurred something else, but I'd turned around and caught sight of Hoob. I got the dizzy feeling in my stomach again, and he smiled at me, throwing a wink to me after. My face heated up even more. I felt like I was 14 again, with a stupid childish crush on someone who was way out of my league.

"Looks like our little Sunny has got a crush!" Georgie laughed nudging me.

"Fuck you Georgie." I shot back. I sighed, turning around to Georgie. "I dunno.. I'm stuck..."


	4. Raised to be a Fighter

**Raised to be a Fighter**

* * *

It's true. I'd become stuck in the bog of emotions that sucked so many unknowing people into the deep, dark confusion that is love. Since I hadn't spoken to Hoob recently, as much as I used to, I'd been talking to Malark more. And now I was lost because I wasn't sure if I had feelings for Malark or Hoob, and it was affecting me, not so much in my army side of life, but my social side. I didn't have a clue what I was feeling, and really, drinking seemed to be my only solution.

I'd felt giddy every time I set my eyes on Hoob since he kissed me, but then I had butterflies crashing around my insides, every time I spoke or went near to Malark.

"How do you mean stuck?" Joey quizzed me, pissed as a fart.

"You're drunk, at this moment in time, you haven't got an opinion. George, you're not. Help me!"

"Why? And yeah, what do you mean you're stuck?" he asked, taking into mind what Joey had said.

I hastily explained to the two how I felt, but I was less than impressed with their advice.

"Kiss Malark, and then you can decide." they had both told me. I groaned; it was no use trying to talk to the two of them. It's be better to ask a married man for his opinion. So I asked Johnny, because, as much as I trusted Lip, I couldn't find him, and Johnny was like a father to me anyway.

* * *

"What did George and Toye say to you?" he asked after I had explained most of my problem.

"I should kiss him, and then decide who I like most..."

"Well, there you go. Usually the worst sounding advice could be the best... and I don't have anything for ya.."

"And you're married?" I groaned, sitting in the quietest corner with my drink. Maybe it was all in my head and they were just childish crushes. Or maybe it was something psychological? Whatever it was, it was confusing me.

* * *

"Hey, mind if I sit?" came a familiar Georgian drawl, one that I didn't want to hear at the moment. It startled me out of my thoughts. Looking up, my eyes met with the deep, greeny blue ones of Don Malarkey.

"Oh, er, no, not at all." I flustered, blushing violently. "By any chance, did George or Johnny say anything to you...?"

"No... but Joe Toye did."

I slapped myself mentally, leaning to the side so I had a good view of Joey at the bar. He gave me a wobbly wave, and I flashed my middle finger at him. George, who was still serving at the little bar chuckled and plied Joey with more booze.

"Said you had a problem..."

"He say anything else?"

"Let me just ask... is he going to be in trouble if I say yes?"

"Oh yes. He'll never live it down."

"Then yes, he did say something else..." Malark smiled.

I groaned, wanting to crawl into a hole and die slightly. Just slightly, not much... When I was in a situation like this before I died and came to Heaven.. I mean, Toccoa, I usually wished I was an aphid. Why an aphid? It's simple; they're asexual, they don't have to worry about feelings and probably didn't have to go through the shit I did. It was simple enough.

Ugh why did I have to be a girl, with all these stupid feelings, that made me automatically burn up whenever a certain someone spoke to me.

"You, uh... want to go some place else and talk about it?"

_'Oh God, I'm so screwed right now... I'm going to kill Joey!'_ I thought to myself. But while the thoughts of a homicidal maniac echoed through me head, I couldn't say no to my friend, so the two of us left, and Joe Toye was safe for a little longer.

* * *

"What's going on with you Molly-Anne? You seem to be all over the place lately.."

"I have to be, everyone keeps tripping up on Currahee and hurting themselves."

"Stop joking Molly-Anne. You're all awkward again."

"What do you mean again?" I frowned, turning around once we were far enough away from the rec hall. I fiddled nervously with the hem of Malark's jacket, which he'd loaned me after noticing I was shivering when we left, as he reminded me how awkward I was around all the older guys when I got to Toccoa.

"So tell me, what's going on for the hundredth time already." he pleaded, suddenly grabbing my hands and pulling them to his chest. I sighed, I couldn't lie forever.

"The thing is... a while ago, Hoobler, kissed me and ever since it's been... odd... I get giddy and nauseous around him... but at the same time... it happens around you too..." I blushed. I felt so nervous I thought I was going to be sick. Gently pulling my hands away from the stunned Malark, placing them down in front of my tummy, I excused myself and went back to the party.

* * *

"Beau, there you are! I've been looking all over for you." Hoob smiled, as he caught me walking back into the room. I smiled nervously at him, glancing over his shoulder, as Georgie and Johnny nodded, making motions to me to talk to Hoob. I gave them a little glare and looked back at Hoob, who was giving me a nervous smile too.

"Yeah, here I am... um... is.. is everything okay?"

"Uh.. yeah, I was just wondering, if you'd come for a walk with me?" he asked, as Malark passed the two of us. He spared me a curious glance, but smiled, as he walked to the bar.

_**I never had a chance with Hoobler around.**_

"Uhm, yeah okay, sure..." I agreed, as he held out his arm for me. I shook my head with a smile, as I took his arm and we wandered off outside. We walked for a long time, eventually ending up at the foot of Currahee, where no one could see us.

* * *

"I'm sorry that your birthday sucked last year... it'll be better this time round." he told me quietly, stopping in his tracks and turning around to face me. He stared, deep into my eyes, before tearing his sweet gaze away, to up the mountain.

"I'm not walking up that. I have to run up it every other day."

"You do? Surely no one should treat a young lady like that!" he gasped in mock outrage. I looked up at the 5 foot 9 paratrooper stood before me, with a smile. To me, he was my best friend, and the brightest person I could ever have wanted to meet and know. He was one in a million and I would be an idiot to let him go.

"So Molly Moo... how've you been?"

"Molly Moo? What am I a cow, Donald Duck." I giggled. Hoob chuckled, and began to gently pull me up the mountain trail.

"Aww Hoob, I thought we weren't going up!"

"Oh shut up, I thought that it would be ro-." He stopped mid-way through the sentence, blushed, and refused to say anything else. I didn't press him about it, but I sure as hell complained about having to walk 3 miles up a fucking mountain, when I'd only just been made to run it, full pack with additions (a base plate for Skip and Don's mortar) that morning.

"Beau, I get it, just shut up and enjoy the view." he ordered after an hour of walking up the mountain. I breathed a sigh of awe, as I gazed upon the beauty of the moon-lit Georgian landscape. It took my breath away, much like the man next to me. I stole a glance in the moonlight, and saw him smiling in pure content and happiness, as he too gazed out upon the camp. My heart skipped a beat or two, as he turned to face me. Holding out an arm, he beckoned me to come close to him. Hesitating for a moment, I moved closer. Hoob's arm snaked around my shoulders, as the two of us watched over our pretend kingdom.

"Hoob..."

"Yeah Beau?" he breathed wistfully, casting a glance down at me.

"Why did you... why did you kiss me that time."

I felt him tense up, but he didn't say anything. I waited patiently for a while, but he never answered, so I dropped my shoulders and moved away, down the mountain. Me heart said 'stay', but my brain said 'leave' and I felt like I had two people waging war against each other in my body.

"Beau wait!" Hoobler called, after I'd begun to make my way down Currahee. I stopped, and turned around.

"Yes?" I almost sighed. I was tired, and I wanted to get back to barracks before the Goonies came back from the rec-hall, so I could fall asleep before they got back.

"I wanted to see..."

"You see with your eyes, not your lips." I scowled, trying to hide a smirk from him.

"You know what I mean.."

"Actually, I don't Hoobler... I'm stuck... I haven't spoken to you for a long time and you choose now to talk to me..."

"You could have spoken to me.."

"I could have yeah, but I didn't know what to say... I mean.. you can't do that and not tell me why..."

He ran a hand through his lovely hair, in an act of nervousness. I couldn't help but smile, when I saw his adorable ears turn bright red.

"You ever wonder why I was so bad to you? When you first got here."

I nodded, thinking at the same time.

"I did, but then I decided I couldn't care less... why?"

"Well, I was trying to get you to leave..."

"What? Why?" I gasped, hurt and taken aback.

"Because I didn't want you to get hurt!" he fought back, edging a little closer, his arms out in front of him.

"I don't know whether or not you remember how I got here... but I died? I've been hurt before.."

"Not like that... well, yes like that, but I meant by someone you love..."

"What, so because I'm the only girl here, I'm automatically going to fall in love with someone?"

"No! Beau.. oh fuck, this has just come out all wrong..."

* * *

_I could hear Renee and Gene panic, as I slowly slipped away. Then I heard a voice. It was ethereal, and echoed. A light shone before me, like a door opening in the pitch dark. Those we'd lost, gathered around me pushing me to fight back, willing me to live. They were so alive, even though they were gone. They looked like they had back in the day, full of life, and vigour, and strong. I couldn't bring myself to move or breath.. to live._

_And then, among the voices, came the one I had loved the most as a child._

"_Molly-Anne, I did not raise yo, to give up. I raised yo to be a fightuh, to be the girl who always chooses to follow her heart, to be strong and compassionate, and to be a lover of being alive an wid the people that mattuh the most to yo. Now if yo don' fight fo what yo been waitin' fo, there will be hell to pay." my mothers voice commanded. It was almost as if she was there with me.. and for that Southern Belle, I would do anything. So I got up from the table, and closed the door to death. I wasn't ready to leave just yet._


	5. A kiss and all was said

**A Kiss, and all was said.**

_How did it happen that their lips came together? How does it happen, that birds sing, that snow melts, that roses unfold, that the dawn whitens behind the stark shapes of trees on the quivering summit of a hill. A kiss, and all was said._

_Victor Hugo  
_

* * *

_I spluttered back into life, coughing what was in my lungs, up on to Gene and Renee._

"_Mon Deiu!" Gene exclaimed._

"_Merci! Merci!" Renee cried joyfully. I guess I was the one who didn't get away._

_They patched me up, doped me up on painkillers and evacuated to the nearest hospital._

_I was out of it for most of the time I was in there, and I carried on dreaming about my life._

* * *

I wasn't speaking to Hoob again, because he was just frustrating me to the point where I wanted to drown him. We were on the Samaria, going to England. I hadn't been home for a long time, well England anyway. I wondered what it would look like when I got there. Would it be better or worse than the modern world? I thought for hours about it, lost in my own little world, sat next to JoJo on his bunk. I gazed up at the ceiling of the ship, when I felt the bunk move. Dazedly, I looked around for my very protective big brother like friend, only to find, he'd started a fight with Bill. Rolling my eyes with a sigh, I jumped off JoJo's bunk and squeezed my way through the crowd of men in the gangways.

Walking around outside, I was still in my own little world, until someone knocked me out of it. Literally. I'd just turned a corner, when I ran smack bang into the person I wanted to throw over board. Hoobler.

* * *

He glanced over my shoulder, giving me a look that said don't turn around. I scowled, but didn't argue, even when he put his arm over my shoulder and led me away.

"Don't look now, but Sobel has been following you the whole way around the ship."

"And how would you know that?"

"Because I saw him leer at you, lick his lips and follow you. I've been following him." he explained, as he led me to the bowels of the ship. Sobel had been following me?

"What was he following me for?"

"I don't know if you've noticed, but you're the most gorgeous girl on the planet. Like a lot of us guys, Sobel is probably wanting to get in your panties. Only I doubt he'd like to actually have a proper relationship with you."

I stumbled a little. The thought of Sobel's body on mine, horrified me, and I gasped a little in disgust, shuddering as Hoob pulled me down another corridor.

"Hey wait a minute! What do you mean 'most of us guys'? What are you talking about?"

"I said some of us guys would like to get in your panties... you're more concerned about that than the Sobel thing?"

* * *

We stopped in the middle of a quiet corridor, satisfied that Sobel wouldn't find us. We paused to catch our breath. I watched as Hoob checked both ends of the corridor, before he came back. It dawned on me, how much I had actually missed talking to him. Yeah, sometimes I was so frustrated with him I could hit him, but not talking to him like I used to, well it just made me sad I guess.

"No, I'm very concerned about the Sobel thing, but since thinking about it makes my skin crawl, I'd rather focus, who else wants in. Besides he might have found out it was me who put him out and made the incision into his side.." I told him, pointing to where my underwear would be.

"Tab-"

"I know about him, he's forever gawking at my perfectly formed behind." I smirked, leaning back against the wall, closing my eyes so I could rub them.

"Well apart from him... Joe Toye.. Perconte, Luz, Malarkey... me..."

I remember my eyes flicking open and landing on Hoob's face. His ears tinged bright red, as did his cheeks.

"You want in my pants?" I asked incredulously, raising my eye brows.

"I.. yeah, but so do the others!"

I felt myself pushing my body from the cool wall of the troop ship, and pressing against his chest. Through his clothes and chest, I could feel his heart thudding against his rib cage, as I backed him against the other side of the narrow corridor, chewing my lip.

"Well, it's a good job I like you then isn't it, with all this competition." I whispered in his ear, backing off and walking down the corridor. I let out a shaky breath, wondering where the courage came from to do that. Behind me, I could hear Hoob's foot steps following me, and I assumed it was so Sobel couldn't get me alone. Hoob had really freaked me out, with what he said about the guys, especially Sobel, but I didn't act any different with them. I thought it was actually quite flattering that my guys thought that way, once I got over the shock.

* * *

Walking back to the bunk I shared with JoJo, I bumped into Don.

"Oh hey Don! Sorry I wasn't looking where I was going." I smiled. I noticed him blush.

"It's okay.. where you been?"

"Well, I was going to a wedding, but then I got hit by a car and ended up on my way to England because Hitler started this whole thing."

He smiled sarcastically at me, and told me JoJo wanted to talk to me. Smiling again, I walked off to find JoJo and concoct my plan to win over Hoob.

* * *

I found JoJo soon enough, with a cloth wrapped around his nose. He was arguing with Eugene over the state of his face.

"Yo need ta let me look at yo nose!" Eugene demanded, annoyance dripping from every word he spoke.

"Gene I'll take care of it. JoJo. Lemme see!" I told them both, standing behind Gene. The medic nodded and left, while JoJo removed the cloth from his nose. It wasn't bleeding any more, but it had been and quite badly at that. His lip was split and would need stitching.

"Lay down JoJo." I ordered, pushing him on to his back, so he was laid the full length of his bunk.

Quietly, I cleaned his nose with a cloth that I'd drizzled with water and then his lip, so I could see where the stitches needed to go.

I began to concentrate hard, so I didn't hurt JoJo by accident. When I concentrate, I usually start singing to myself. In my opinion I'm not great at singing, but the guys who heard me, usually asked me to sing another song for them.

I was singing Kylie 'I Believe in You' because I was listening to it that morning. I wasn't singing loudly, but JoJo could hear it.

"I like that song." he admitted, as I was trying to stitch his lip up.

"So do I, but JoJo please keep still." I looked up at my bunk next to him. I paused for a moment, looking at my little bag which held my iPod in it. I contemplated chucking myself over JoJo to get it, but I didn't think he'd be impressed.

"Pass me that would you JoJo?"

He did what was asked of him, and I pulled my iPod and ear phones out of it.

"Here, listen to this for a bit." I told him, clicking the most played list as he stuck the ear phones in to his ears. It kept him quiet for a while, until Rammstein came on.

"What's this guy mean?" he asked, as I was putting my things away.

"What's the song called."

"Mein Teil."

"You know JoJo, I don't think you'll want to know." I replied, knowing the meaning behind the song. He pressed me to tell him, so I had to explain the whole gory meaning of the song. When I was done telling him, he looked at me like I'd killed a dolphin.

"That was real? A guy, actually did that?"

"Yes, for the 12th time today JoJo."

"But.."

"I know... people are weird." I told him, holding out my hand for my iPod back. He carefully wrapped the ear phones around the device, and I put it back in the bag. I scratched the side of my mouth, just starting to turn around, when his planted a small kiss on my cheek. I blushed, looking back at him.

"What was that for?" I blushed not used to the physical affection from JoJo. He looked at me with a goofy smile on his face.

"You too?" I groaned.

"If only you were Jewish, you'd be perfect." he grinned, pulling me into a hug.

"I am perfect. And I'm half Cajun too." I told him, folding my arms over my chest. "Anyway, I'd have to be a good 5 years older."

"Why? Just cause I'm older..." he paused looking over my shoulder. "Hoob's staring at you..."

"A lot of you guys stare at me."

"Maybe he wants to talk to you?" JoJo frowned, slapping me upside the head.

"He always wants to talk to me.. but he never says the things he thinks.. up until today when he said he wanted in my pants."

JoJo gave me a look as if to say, 'meh'.

"That's it? Well you're no damn help." I scowled, turning around to go to Hoob once more.

* * *

"Why do I always come to you when you call?" I sighed, following him to a lifeless part of the ship.

"Because you know you'd do anything for me.." he told me, grinning. I rolled my eyes, but we both knew deep down it was true.

"What do you want?" I asked impatiently. I'd earlier promised Don that I'd have a drink with him, as some of us had snook alcohol on board.

"I want you to come here..." he told me holding out his hand. I took it and he pulled me flush against him. Gasping at the suddenness of his actions, I looked up at him, wondering what he was doing.

"Kiss me Molly-Anne. I want to do it properly this time." he admitted, wrapping one arm around my waist, while his other hand came up to my face, taking my chin between his index finger and thumb. He rubbed my lips with his thumb, before he bent down and kissed me. It started off soft, but gradually got deeper, ending with his tongue licking mine, as he pressed me against the wall of the corridor. I was completely lost in our kiss, but then I remembered Don was waiting to have drink with me. I pulled away gently.

"I promised Don I'd have a drink with him.."

"Stay for a little longer..."

"Why so you can jump my bones?"

"I.. Well, I didn't..."

"Hoob.. you know how I feel about you.. but you know there's something there for Malarkey... I just... I just don't know.." I mumbled to him, looking at my feet. There'd always been something there for Don, but I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to hurt them if I liked the other one more than the other.

"Just.. I don't know what you want Hoob... and I don't know what I want either."

I left him in the corridor, and made my way to the livelier part of the ship.

* * *

I told Don the exact same thing what I'd said to Hoob and what I'd thought. I leant over the rail with the mess cup full of whiskey that we were sharing, gazing out to sea, trying to lose my feelings in the salty ocean. Don joined me, and we stood for a while, leaning on the railing, thinking and enjoying the rare silence. I handed him the mess tin and rubbed my eyes. Drink always made me drowsy.

"So... you're not sure if you have feelings for either of us?" he asked eventually.

"No, I know I have feelings for both of you.. I just don't know who it's stronger for.."

"Well you kissed Hoob didn't you?"

"Yeah... I kissed him today, so I know something is still there..."

"But you've never kissed me.."

"I know, but if I figure out I like Hoob more, won't you be hurt? And if I like you more, then that will hurt Hoob.."

"Well... you're only going to be confused if you don't see.. it'll help you make your mind up."

"I should just go to someone else.. convert to Judaism, then I can marry JoJo."

"Molly-Anne, Joe Liebgott would destroy you.. and if you like Hoob more than me, well I can get over that. Hoob's a good guy."

"How would he destroy- oh.. I see what you're getting at... but what if Hoob doesn't like me..."

"From what you told me, he seems to like you..."

"Yeah, but.."

"Look, Molly-Anne, there's one way you can solve this... it doesn't have to be a long kiss..."

"Well, okay, but I have one last question... what if I kiss you and we get into something, but I then think I have feelings for Hoob... what will I do?"

He looked at me for a while, trying to work out an answer, and finding none, just shrugged.

"I suppose we'll deal with it when it comes to it."

I nodded slowly, looking back out at the deep blue, almost black waves. I'd always hated being on the sea at night, I had an avid fear of drowning, even though I rarely went near the seaside or on a boat.

"Well... do you want to try?"

I looked at him hesitantly, biting my lip, as I looked at his. I nodded slowly, and we turned to face each other. We'd drunk the last of the whiskey and the mess tin was attached to Don's belt, so we didn't drop it, because if we did, Sobel would have killed us. He leaned in closer, wrapping one hand around the back of my neck, and one around my waist and pulled me flush against him. He asked me one more time if I wanted to kiss him, and two voices in my head began arguing.

_**Do it, then you'll know for sure.**_

_**Don't do it, you know you love Hoobler.**_

But I wanted to know. So I kissed him. And I will admit, there was a spark, but it didn't light a fire, not like with Hoob. We pulled away after a while and he looked at me, searching my face. I shook my head and he sighed in return.

"It was nice, it really was, but..."

"But you like Hoob?"

"Yeah... I'm sorry Don I really am..."

"It's okay... I'll get over it." He smiled. It made me feel awful. I felt like crying. "Hey, woah, don't look at me like that! It's not your fault, c'mon Molly-Anne don't cry."

He hugged me tight for a while, waiting for the tears to subside, and then let me go.

"You want me to leave you to your thoughts?"

I nodded.

"Okay, night Molly-Anne. Nothing's changed you know, we'll still be friends." he smiled, kissing the top of my head.

"Thank you." I mumbled, watching him leave.

* * *

I stood on my own for a while, just thinking, letting the wind lift up the loose bits of my hair, as I gazed out at the black water.

"Why'd you kiss Malarkey?"

"The same reason you kissed me. I wanted to see."

"Is that so?" Hoob's voice asked accusingly.

"Yeah."

"So?"

"So what?"

"So what did you find out?"

He obviously didn't seem to be in the mood to listen, so I shrugged my shoulders.

"I love you."


	6. Are you ready for love?

**Are you ready for love?**

My loyal readers, (Becca included) prepare for a down pour of utter soppyness. this chapter is like, soppy x100... well it is in my book

Just like to say thanks for those who reviewed already, so Thank you :)

R&R please! :)

* * *

I guess he wasn't ready to hear those words, so I waited for when he was.

We docked in Liverpool when we got to England. I surveyed the bombed out buildings as I made my way to a truck, before I was stopped.

"Molly-Anne, why don't you ride up in the cabin, I'm sure the driver could use your company." Dick said to me, just as I was climbing onto the truck

I looked at George, who I had been walking with, and shrugged.

"Yes sir."

Walking round to the front of the truck, I opened the door and dumped in my bag.

"Woah, steady on!" cried a chirpy, Cockney voice from inside the cab.

"All right all right, calm down!" I called back, jumping into the cab.

"'Ere, you're a lass!"

"With observations like that, I'm surprised you're not the best scout in the military." I shot back, settling into the truck cab before shutting the door.

"Well I didn't fink they let girls in the army."

"They don't. I'm just an exception."

"Sorry... I can see you don't want to be 'ere... go on, go join your mates." he told me miserably. I looked at him, sidelong, waiting for him to start up the truck.

"Look boyo, if we're going where we're going, you'd better get going. My CO is the most anal git you've ever met. If he could, he'd take your weekend pass too." I grumbled trying not to be too friendly. He just smiled at me, almost shyly.

* * *

Half an hour into the journey, he decided to speak.

"So.. what's your name?" he asked me, giving me a nervous, but quick glance.

"Molly-Anne Beauclaire. And you?"

"Jonathan. Jonathan Bouvier."

"Bouvier? That's a strange name for a Cockney." I replied frankly, staring out of the window. It had just started to rain, and I was watching the windscreen wipers glide from side to side, as the pushed the rain off the windscreen. It was slowly hypnotising me, so I pulled my stare away.

"I know, all my mates fink that."

"Where you from?"

"Saffend." (That's South End, for you non Cockneys). "You?"

"Shropshire."

"Live in a posh 'ouse?"

"I guess so."

"Bet that's nice..."

"Why so glum chum?" I asked him, reclining back as much as I could in the small space. He studied me for a while, and I could see in his eyes, the right and left sides of his brain need to have a meeting.

"My mate.. he went missing a while ago, and his girl was really upset." I nodded, as he looked at me to see if I understood. "Well, he asked me to look after her if anything should 'appen to 'im... well..."

"Well what?... You two got together or something?"

"Yeah.. and it turns out, his ship sank, but he got picked up by an American ship and he's in a hospital... but we're engaged now... so what do we tell him?"

I thought about it quietly. On the one hand, he could go nuts that his mate asked his girl to marry him.. but on the other hand.

"Just be honest. He can take it two ways; good or bad. If you're happy together, then he should just let it go.."

* * *

We talked the whole way to Aldbourne. I didn't even realise that the truck had stopped and we'd carried on talking, until Joe Leibgott rapped his skinny knuckles on the glass at the door. I blushed, embarrassed that I'd been so wrapped up in my conversation. Jonathan said he was stationed in Aldbourne, so we agreed to meet up and talk, before I threw my bag out at Joe, and jumped out.

"Bye John!"

"See ya later Sunny." I grinned as he waved me off, before starting up the truck and driving away.

"Dammit woman, you talk too much."

"Dammit man, you fight too much." I countered my skinny friend. He smirked, and I stuck my tongue out at him. He just chuckled and we were led away to our billets. I was so tired I went to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

* * *

I woke up the next morning with Joe dragging me up.

"Rise and shine."

"I'll give you fucking shine..." I mumbled into my pillow as he tried to drag me up off the bed.

"Hey, Joe, I'll get her." I heard Hoobs whisper. Next thing I knew, his hand connected with my backside, with a painfully loud slap. **That** woke me up. I yelped, jumping to a kneeling position, as I grabbed the sore spot. I glared daggers at Hoobs, while he stood there, looking smugger than Smug McSmuggington who'd just won Smuggest Man in the World. Joe stared at him, and then me, as did the rest of the guys. Everyone backed off. This shit was now serious.

Much to their surprise, I got dressed first. Well, I'm hardly going to run around without the appropriate clothes on. But once I was dressed, Hoobs had hell to pay.

I chased him all around the room, the two of us diving over beds, and out the door, as he set off running for a nearby hill, hoping I wouldn't catch him. How wrong he was to thing that.

I easily caught up with him. He may have gotten to boast about being one of the fittest men in the unit, (or Airborne for that matter) but I was the fittest woman (and only woman) in the unit.

Grabbing his sides, I twisted, bringing us both down to the grass. He looked a little stunned at first, but he breathed a sigh of relief and started to laugh. Why was he relieved?

"Beau, if your knee had gone any higher, I wouldn't be having children." he chuckled, looking down at the placement of my knee. I'd fallen right between his legs, with half of my chest resting on his. He rolled me over, so now I was on my back, with him above me.

"You're completely not funny Donald." I told him with a frown.

"Oh I beg to differ Molly-Anne."

"Shut up and get off me."

"Woah, why so harsh?" he asked, as we brushed ourselves off.

"I'm not being harsh, it's just that if Sobel finds you hovering over me like this, all hell's going break loose." he nodded. I was always right. Didn't stop him stealing a cheeky kiss though. I was going to kill him... eventually.

* * *

"We don't spend enough time together." he announced as we walked back to barracks for breakfast.

"No, we spend more than enough time together."

"Don't."

"Do."

"Don't."

"Donald Duck, I am not getting into a childish argument with you."

"But we don't spend enough time together." He complained, tugging at my hand. I sighed, irritated, stopping in my tracks.

"I am not your girlfriend Hoobs, we're friends, nothing more nothing less. We live together, we fight together, hell we jump out of planes together, how much more time can we spend together?" I asked, putting out a point. He looked at me, a little confused and a little sad.

"But you said you loved me."

"I do, but telling you that doesn't make me your girl, does it? And anyway, you're the one who didn't want to know..."

"Tell me."

"Tell you what?" I groaned, annoyed that he'd changed the subject. I rolled my eyes and dropped my shoulders.

"Tell me that you love me."

"No. I told you once, and you didn't want to know..."

I started to walk away, but he grabbed my hand and yanked me back. He looked into my eyes, with seriousness swirling in his own.

"God-dammit, I've watched you walk away so many times and I don't know how I did it, because watching you walk away right now, is killing me." he told me, grabbing my upper arms and holding me tightly in my place. I frowned, and he looked sad still, but his confusion became hurt.

"Why are you saying all this now?"

"Because one day, you won't come back when you walk away... and I don't want to risk not hearing you tell me you love me." he told me, with more passion and vigour in his voice than I ever heard.

"And how do you know, that I'm going to stay and tell you I love you, huh?"

"Because I'm going to tell you, every day, for the rest of our lives, that I love you."

I felt my face heat up, my heart beat a million times a minute and my eyes well up with salty tears. I'd never been spoken to like that in my life, and I generally didn't like being spoken to like that, but having heard it from the sweetest man in my life, it just sent me funny, and I began to cry. He pulled me into his chest, so that no one would see me cry my heart out.

"I love you so much Hoobs..." I wailed into his chest, the woollen jacket itching my nose.

"You think you'll ever get tired of me?"

"Never. Never ever ever."


	7. Memories

**Memories**

****Sorry about the crappy title guys, I couldn't think of anything other than the two mountain sized basket of ironing I've had to do, and how much I'm looking forward to Downton Abbey... to say I'm a 17 year old who lives in an area where underage drinking is rife, I'm living on the wild side...

Anyway me amigos, R&R and enjoy :)

* * *

Walking into the mess hall with red, puffy eyes, George and Perco gave Hoobs a little glare, worried that he'd hurt me.

"It's okay, I'm not sad!" I smiled, sniffing and shaking my head.

They eyed Hoobs suspiciously, but didn't say anything, even though I knew they wanted to. I sighed, looking at the black coffee that didn't look decent to me at all. I don't know what it is, but I just can't bring myself to drink coffee in a morning.

"What's the matter?" Hoobs asked, looking at my displeased face.

"I'm British. I drink tea, not black coffee..."

"The mess doesn't have any tea..."

"Well that's probably why it's called a mess then, isn't it? You can't have coffee without tea."

"Hey, Sunny, watch this." Perco said. He picked up his mug, took a big gulp and set it back down. "Coffee without tea."

"Wise ass." I muttered under my breath. I blushed, as I felt Hoobs' hand find mine under the table.

"What's that?" George smirked, leaning in to look at me.

"What's what? I don't know what you're talking about."

Then he started to laugh, and the whole mess looked at him, before going back to their conversations. I glared at George, getting redder. He only stopped laughing when Bull came up behind him and hit him round the back of the head.

"You leave Little Sunshine alone. She's gonna be patching you up."

"Hopefully, I won't have to patch him up, ever."

George carried on smirking, pointing at me.

"You gotta admit Bull, she's as red as Malark's hair. You two aren't doing anything under there are you."

"Listen here George Luz." I ordered, poking him in the chest. His smirk fell off his cheeky lips, "I'm already over looking the fact that you walked into the showers while I was in there on purpose, don't push it."

Now it was him who went redder than Malark's hair. I stuck my tongue out, satisfied that I had gotten my own back, and rose from my seat. Hoobs joined me too, and we left the mess, exiting to cat calls and whistles.

* * *

Outside, Hoobs held his hand out to me, but I took the last two fingers in my hand. It had started in Toccoa, when we were alone one night, and I was playing with his hands, one of my favourite things to do. Hoobs smiled down at me, with a strange look on his face. It was a cross between a look of awe, adoration, love, friendship, wonder and all these other things, rolled into to one.

"You know.. I can't believe it.." he breathed after a while.

"What?" I asked, looking up at him.

"That I was mean to you.. you know to try and get you to leave.."

"Why did you try to get me to leave?"

"Because.. I dunno, I guess I wanted to protect you."

"I'm the medic, I'm meant to be protecting you."

He pulled me into a hug, kissing the top of my head with a smile.

"Do you believe in soul mates?" he questioned me, still holding me in his arms.

"Oh god." I joked, rolling my eyes.

"Well not soul mates.. just, people who belong together... my ma always said, that love is like paper-"

"Thin and white?"

"No..." Now he rolled his eyes. "She used to say, everyone has their perfect match, and no two halves are the same, like paper. There's only one other like it, if you rip a piece of paper in half."

"Ohhh, I see..."

"You see where I'm going with this?"

"Umm.. are you trying to tell me I'm thin, white and ripped in half?"

He just frowned, but I could see him hiding a smile.

"I'm saying.. well trying to say... that... well... do you think we were meant to be?"

I was stumped.

"Well... I... um.."

"Beau, I'm not mad at you if you say you don't know, or no."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I have to go to training... I'll see you at lunch... and then you can tell me what we are." I told him, catching sight of Gene, who was looking around for me.

"You're my girl. That's what we are. You're my girl, I'm your guy and there's no two ways about it."

"So I don't have a say? It's a bit over the top isn't it?" I smirked, glancing back at Gene, who'd seen me by now.

"Whatever... you better get your ass over to Gene, he looks desperate."

"It must be the effect I have on people, you look the same when I'm not around." I told him, sticking out my tongue. He gave me a shy smile and blushed, before he gave me a tender kiss on the lips.

* * *

_I woke with a start. I was in a hospital bed, far away from the line. In the beds next to me, were Joe and Bill, who were both having a conversation with each other, before they noticed I was awake. They smiled, as I drifted back off._

* * *

"Lemme have your tags a minute." Hoobs said as we sat down with our lunch. I looked at him suspiciously, but gave them him anyway. I watched as he took off his own, taking the second tag from his and swapping it with the second tag from mine, so we had one of each.

"Why did you do that?" I asked, putting my tags on.

"Just because I can."

"Always a good reason. Now don't go getting all soppy on me Donald Duck." I told him, taking a drink of my water.

"You two love birds mind? Some of us are trying to eat here." George scolded perfectly in Perconte's voice. It caught me off guard and I ended up spitting my water out back into my cup as I laughed. I laughed even harder as he carried on the impression, while Perco stood behind him.

Well until Sobel strode into the mess. He pointed at me and my heart stopped. Needless to say, I was scared to death of this man.

"You've been billeted into a nearby house. You'll take your things and Evans will drop you there." he informed me, looking pleased to get rid of me, for now.

"Yes sir."

"And Beauclaire?" I stopped and turned to face him. "You'll be sharing with 3 other nurses."

I hadn't really been in female company since Penwarden and I almost winced at the thought.

However, instead of the awkwardness, it was fantastic having other girls to talk to.

There was Charlotte, or Charlie, from Saffend (yes another South Ender). She was bubbly and talkative, and by far my favourite. Then there was Marnie, from Topeka, Kansas, and had the best accent ever. Full stop. And last but not least, Hazel from Wales. She was a real vally girl.

* * *

We soon became fast friends, and that night, we sat around the kitchen table, smoking and playing scrabble.

"I heard some of the Americans are goin' 'aht tonight." Charlie announced, winning the game for the fourth time that night.

"Well they didn't tell me... mind you, our CO keeps taking our passes." I replied, leaning back in my seat when someone knocked on the door.

"I'll get that, Charlie gets to make another pot of tea because she won." Hazel joked, getting up to answer the door.

We'd barely started talking again, when she walked back in with a huge smirk on her face.

"Well, looks like our mate already has a G.I. Joe." she smiled, as Hoobs stepped through the kitchen door way.

"Hoobs! What are you doing here?!" I laughed, jumping up from my seat in surprise and happiness.

"I missed you." he replied simply, with a shrug and he sweet little smile.

The girls 'awwed' in unison, as I went over hugged the life out of him. We blushed, as he wrapped his arms around me.

"Jesus Hoob, hurry up! I thought we were going for a drink!" George's voice called from out side. We rolled our eyes at him.

"Hey, you didn't say he'd brought his friends!" Charlie whined at Hazel.

"I didn't know."

"Just get your damn coats, they're pains, but they'd be glad for the company."

* * *

Marnie and Hazel really hit it off with George and Perco, but Charlie was left all on her own.

"It's okay, go and have fun... I should be used to this." she replied sadly when I asked her if she wanted to watch the guys play darts.

And then Donald Malarkey came walking in. She didn't see him stare at her for a while, when he got his drink, but after he came straight over. Shyly, but he came to talk to her anyway.

"Hey Lark. This is Charlie, Charlie, this is Malark." with that I got up and left.

"Look at you, bringing people together." Hoobs smirked, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"It's what I do."

"I love you so much." he chuckled, giving me a lingering kiss. Looking around the bar before making his decision, Hoobs pulled me quietly to the door, and we left unnoticed.

* * *

_I woke up, red faced, with a little smile on my lips. My cheeks got redder, as I saw Joe and Bill staring at me._

"_What?"_

"_Nothing.. just wonderin' why you got a blush an' a smile on ya face." Bill grinned, wheeling his chair over to me._

"_Dreamin' about Hoobs?"_

_I blushed even more. If only they knew._

* * *

The next morning I woke up sore, with Hoobs' arm thrown over my naked body. I bit my lip, to stop the tears falling, after my memories came flooding back. He stirred when I moved away.

"Beau?" he mumbled into my pillows. When I didn't reply, he woke up, rubbing his eyes and pulling me to him. "Beau, what? Why are you crying?"

Then he noticed the blood on the sheets.

"Oh God Beau! Please tell me... why didn't you tell me that you were..."

"That I was a virgin?"

"Yeah.. I thought you'd.. I mean, you said in Toccoa..."

I shook my head, embarrassedly and ashamed. He looked panicked.

"Oh god and I just... oh god Beau, please forgive me, I didn't.."

"I'd rather have you taken it, than anyone else." I admitted shyly. "I love you.."

* * *

He kissed me more times than I could count and we fell back to sleep soon after, although we were woken up not long after by a loud bump out side my door.

"Shh George, can't you be more careful?" Marnie's voice hissed. So we weren't the only ones who snook off last night.

"Yeah yeah Dorothy, quit yakking at me and help me get down these damn stairs!" George hissed back, falling down a few more steps.

Hoobs snorted loudly at the two of them, before he turned his attention to me.

"I like this."

"Like what?"

"Waking up with you in my arms. It's the best feeling in the world." he smiled, kissing me on the head. I wrapped my arms around him tighter, resting my head on his shoulder.

* * *

Days later, we had a training exercise. Sobel got us lost, and we were all cold and wet and annoyed, but George and Perco had a solution, as usual.

"Hey, Luz, can you do major Horton?"

"Does a wild bear crap in the woods son?" I'd only heard Major Horton speak once, but George had him dead on. Everyone laughed, including George, only his smile slipped when Perco asked him a second question.

"You think the good major could goose this schmuck?"

He looked worried.

"Ah no, no no no no no!" he pleaded, while everyone else encouraged him. He turned to me, asking if I thought he could do it.

"Oh, you got it, you got it!"

He grinned.

"What is the God Damn hold up captain hold up Captain Sobel!"

Watching his face contort in confusion had us all laughing our asses off, and George kept having to shush us so he didn't lose it.

* * *

"_Jeeze, those were good times huh?" Bill smiled, as he sat on my bed, stroking my hair. I smiled weakly._

"_Remember on D-Day and you had to cut yourself out of your harness and you landed smack on top o'Joe. Almost squished him flat!" the Philly man laughed._

"_There you go with my fat ass again!" I giggled, ending in a coughing fit, which caught the attention of a nearby nurse._

"_For Gods sake, she had her lungs turned into pin cushions, and you're making her laugh!"_


	8. Llama Farm Anyone?

**Llama Farm Anyone?**

* * *

"Holy shit! Fucking Jesus! Who the fuck is that?" Joe Toye hissed from below me, as I landed smack on him.

"Sunny..Sorry Joe." I mumbled, trying not to laugh, even as he pushed me off into a puddle. He was now covered in mud, as was I, but it was still funny.

He wasn't very happy that I was still laughing at him from behind my hand, but he let me tag along anyway.

"Hey, just be glad that no one else landed on you, you know Perco has a rather large behind.. and I'm a medic."

Joe just shot me a look and I shut my mouth, even though Malark was sniggering behind his hand too. I just didn't point it out.

At some point we met up with Dick, two guys from the 82nd Airborne, a guy from Able, and Lip. The guys from the 82nd and the guy from Able stuck with us until we found our link up point and went off there, but we still had a small skirmish before that.

Bill just leapt out and hosed a small group of Germans, so everyone had to jump in. there was only me and Dick that didn't (and couldn't) do anything.

"Everyone okay?" Dick asked, when all the fighting was done, and after he'd given Bill a bollocking. "Anyone annoyed?"

"YES!" I replied loudly, much to the amusement of our CO and the rest of the guys. I had a feeling he'd asked that on purpose.

* * *

Sooner or later, we walked past a group of German prisoners, as we made our way up to the link up point. Malark hung back and started talking to one of the soldiers, who was an American born German, but I didn't wait, I just wanted to get to the link up point and sit down for a while.

More Easy guys greeted us at the link up, and before I could even sit down with them, Dick called me over and told me to help Gene at the makeshift aid station. I groaned loudly, but went anyway, because that was my job.

* * *

I was really busy all morning, patching people up with Gene. If it wasn't so gory, it'd be therapeutic. Almost. But, it did take my mind off things. Everyone had gone out up to Brecourt Manor, to stop the guns firing on the beach. I didn't really have to worry too much, in fact when someone came in, helping Popeye in to the aid tent, I had to laugh.

"What a beautiful wound Pops." I laughed as I fixed up his holy ass.

"Yeah, yeah I know... laugh it up... you think Hoobs' gonna be upset that you're looking at my ass?"

I snorted loudly, "Pops, it's my job to fix you up. It's not my fault you got shot in the ass."

But that did kick start my brain. Where was Hoobs? I knew he'd be okay, I would have had a funny feeling about it, but I still had no idea where he was.

* * *

A couple of days later, we'd gone to another link up. The men were still flooding in, but Hoobs still wasn't here. I began to get agitated, and I wandered around aimlessly, so in the end Gene sent me to make a little aid station, where the stragglers could get their cuts cleaned, if they had any.

Just as I'd finished stitching some guys lip up, after getting them busted in a run in with a German, when someone called me from outside. I went to the front door of the deserted old shop, protecting my eyes from the sun, as George called over to me and waved.

"What is it?"

He didn't say anything, just pointed away from him, down the street. Wiping my hands with the raggedy old cloth I'd used to dry them after I'd washed the blood off of my small hands, I stepped down from the front step of the shop, so I could get a better look at what he was pointing at. Or who, he was pointing at.

"Hoobs?"

He slowly turned to face me, but I was already running to him. He flung his arms out to me, with a lop-sided grin, catching me and whirling me around in a circle.

"God I missed you!" he breathed, setting me down, but not letting me go. I clutched at the back of his shirt collar with one hand, balling my other hand up into a fist further down his back.

"I missed you too, I was beginning to worry..."

"Beginning?" he smirked, as he moved away a little bit.

I frowned at him, pulling away as his lips grazed mine slightly.

"Don't let all this badassery go to your head Hoobs." I warned.

"I won't ma'am." he replied, smiling onto my lips. I smiled too, kissing him back.

* * *

We sat down (well he sat down, I kinda threw myself on the floor) near an old monument, as Smokey, Tab and Shifty came walking up. They all boasted about their finds, and even Hoobs had to join in.

"My luger's gunna put you all to shame."

"When he gets it." I added, as he poked me in the belly. "Hey quit that. Don't make me hurt you."

"Like you'd hurt me."

"Remember when I punched you in the jaw in Toccoa?"

"Yes. Now that I think about it, I wouldn't put it past you to break my jaw." I smiled, holding out my arms for him to pull me up.

"You're a lazy ass."

"Not what you said in England. Oh!" I laughed, as his smile changed to a scowl that people give when someone says something immature, because, well, I just had.

"Pulling that face doesn't make you attractive Hoobs."

* * *

"_You really said that to him?" Joe laughed. I nodded, as I told them some of the things I remembered in my sleep. I missed him most._

* * *

Bullets whipped past me, mortars landed near me, and screams echoed around me. I was sat behind a wall, pinned down by a machine gun. Looking to my left, Bill made a motion to me, saying he was going to distract the enemy, so that I could join them on the other side of the road. Just as I peeked around the corner, a bullet struck the edge of the wall, ripping off a chunk of building and forcing it into my face.

The force of it knocked me to the floor, and unconscious for a few seconds, but I was back up in no time, as someone yelled for a medic.

I tore down the street, away from Bill, to the yells of the one in need, listening to the bullets from the machine gun rip up the cobble stone road behind me, as each deadly chunk of metal missed me. Skidding to a halt beside the casualty, I pulled my bag around before noticing who it was.

"Lip? What happened?"

He wouldn't answer, but the look on his face said it all.

"Look, if you don't want me to look, then I can get someone else, yeah?" he nodded, "Okay, TALBERT!"

Whipping around at his name being yelled, he scurried over to me, dropping to his knees when he reached us. He looked at me, questioning why I'd called for him, until I nodded to the blood seeping out of Lip's downstairs arrangements. He tore open the rip in Lip's trousers, and gave it a quick once over.

"You're fine Lip, everything's where it's supposed to be."

* * *

"_That was one hell of a ride." Joe reminisced, gazing off into space, as he joined me on my bed. Our motley crew, consisting of us three wounded Easies and Hazel, sat around smoking like a school of chimneys. We'd been through hell and back, all four of us, and we weren't ready to forget that._

* * *

"Don't do that again. Please." Hoobs said to me later that day, hovering behind Gene as he cleaned the cut to my eye. It was a nice, crescent moon shape, starting in the middle of the bottom my right eye socket, and ending in the middle at the top of my eye socket. Needless to say I was lucky it didn't take out my eye. It'd need stitching, and that's why Hoobs was here. Believe it or not, he wasn't just there to tell me off.

"Oh would you just give it a rest, my ears are still ringing... and anyway, it's my job. Right Gene." I asked the Southern man, hoping he'd take my side.

"Well, you both have a point. It is her job, but running out like that could get you killed."

"All right Switzerland, I get it. Neutral." I waved him off, as he finished stitching my eye up.

* * *

We had a few quiet moments to ourselves, until Harry Welsh told us it was time to move out.

"Lieutenant, lieutenant, I'll take point." Hoobs volunteered as he made his way to the front, gently pulling me along behind him.

"Alright Corporal Hoobler is lead scout. Nice of you to join us Blythe."

"Hey look, Hoobs is trying to impress Sunny."

"By taking point? That doesn't impress me in the least, now if he had a Llama farm," I replied to George, wagging my index finger at him and nodding my head, "Now that would impress me."

"Why a llama farm?" Perco asked me, curiously.

"Who do you know, that has a llama farm?" No reply, "Exactly."


	9. Beggin'

**Beggin'  
**

* * *

**Ohh good god! I think this chapter sucks guys, so I apologize. I just had to think of a way she could save Hoobs' ass later on..**

* * *

"So, this kid drops right out of the tree and right on top of Ole Joe over there. It's the only way he's ever gunna get under her!" Bill howled, as he told his new best friend, a replacement from South Philly. I choked on my drink, ending up with Malark patting my back. I saw Hoobs scowl at Bill, before I lightly kicked his shin.

"Hoobs, it's a joke. Calm down."

"Easy for you two to say, you haven't had to fend all the guys off while you go to the bar." he mumbled into his beer.

"Neither do you, Bull does it, because you're too sweet to look mad. Annoyed at Perco's stupid questions, yes, mad. Never."

"So you two are dating?" the replacement asked me.

"Yeah, I don't have an actual say in it either." I replied, scratching the scabbed up scar around my eye. George grabbed my hand, and when I turned to look at him, he simply shook his head. I huffed, resting my chin on my right palm, drumming my fingers on the table with the other.

"That bad huh?" he smirked. I blinked, before I laughed. Once Bill, one of the toughest son of a bitch in the airborne, or I had accepted you, the rest of the guys just followed suit.

"Oh yeah, awful." I sniggered, watching as Hoobs shook his head with a pout. "Hoobs lighten up! You know I love you."

"Yeah, you sure have a funny way of showing it.."

I rose from the table defiantly, showing no emotion as I spoke.

"Well, I apologise for having a sense of humour. If you don't like it, don't date me."

Turning on my heel, I walked to the exit, passing Smokey as I did so.

"And you, Mr. I-don't-need-to-stay-at-the-aid-station. You just keep taking those pills I gave you. I don't want your leg going blue on me again."

* * *

Grabbing my bag in barracks, rifling through it for my iPod, I hurriedly returned to the mess.

"What are you doing back so soon?" George asked upon my return.

"iPod." I stated simply, sitting between Hoobs and Perco.

"But you.."

"I wanted to make a good exit." I shrugged, playing around on the device people still got amazed by. "But I'm serious. Keep on at me like that, and one day, I won't come back."

Suddenly there was a hiss. Too absorbed watching Hoobs and I have a lovers tiff, Skip had let the cigarette burn out and it burnt his fingers. Taking the proffered one from George, I took hold of Skip's hand, to look at the damage.

"I think I have some burn cream some where..."

"Uhh... Sunny... I don't think you have to bother..." he muttered, almost in a state of shock.

"What are you on about?" I asked turning around. He showed me the inside of his fingers. There was no mark anywhere, even though before I let go and turned round there was. My eyes opened wide.

"But.. I just saw that! You had a burn mark! How did you do that?"

"I didn't do anything... maybe it's you.."

Before I could ask what he meant, he'd already given George a little cut on the hand.

"Skip!" George and I cried, as I grabbed George's hand instinctively. What shocked us, was that right before our eyes, the wound began to slowly close up. My hand shot away, but it carried on healing up, until it was a barely seen scar.

"What the hell..." George and most of the guys murmured. Gene looked at me thoughtfully.

"Didn't yo gran'mother use tah be a traiteuse?"

I nodded, "Yeah.. come to think of it, I fell over once, made a huge mess of my knee when she was baby sitting me... she just patted my knee and put a plaster on, and when I took it off, there was nothing there..."

* * *

"_We always knew you were weird kiddo." Joe snorted. They were once again perched on my bed, along with Hazel. She was getting ready to change my bandages. I'd had an infection in one of my wounds, and I'd been delirious, suffering from hallucinations and a severe fever, I barely scraped through. I knew Hazel wouldn't let me leave so soon after that, and I was being kept back. The last time I heard from the guys, they'd been sent to Noville, wherever the hell that was. A few days ago, Harry had waltzed in,well limped, and told me he'd be going back soon. I was desperate to leave._

* * *

Landing in Holland went with out a hitch. The battle. Well, that could have gone better. Children and old men they said. The war would be over by Christmas, they said. Before, when reading about this in my dad's books, I could only shake my head. But now I was here, it was completely different. I felt how angry people were that it didn't work out, and the information was.. well. Shit.

After the skirmish, we retreated. I could see the look on Dick's face, showing the magnitude of the situation. He'd never had to retreat before, and he hated it.

Buck had been shot in his butt, but seeing as I was tending to other people, with more serious injuries, and due to the fact that he didn't want me touching his bum, he was sent to the aid-station. I was just glad not to have to go with him. He was the only one, outside those who'd been on the table that day, who knew what I could do, after Leib got his nose broken in a fight. Thing is, I didn't know how I could do it. I couldn't do it Normandy, so what kicked it off? I didn't think I'd ever think I'd find out. All I knew, was that I couldn't turn it on and off when I liked. Maybe it was just when my emotions were running high. Whatever it was, I couldn't do it back at the aid station.

Feeling like a disappointment, I left and went back to the guys. As I was arriving, Hoobs, Hashey, Ramirez, Web and Cobb were leaving.

"Where are you lot going?" I asked, stopping as I walked past Hoobs.

"To find Sarge." Hashey replied. I furrowed my brow in confusion.

"You haven't heard?" Hoobs mumbled looking at me curiously.

"Heard what? That the bird is the word? Yes, I heard about that.."

"Bull's missing." Web told me, point blank. My mouth flapped open and shut.

"I'm coming too."

"No, you're not, it's too dangerous."

"So, having to chuck myself from a plane isn't?"

"Beau, you don't have a weapon, and it's dangerous. You aren't coming." Hoobs whispered to me with a hiss, grabbing my arm and pulling me down the road. He stopped half-way, but gave me a little push. I carried on walking, tearing up as I thought about his harsh treatment. I was tired of it. I took the dog tags from around my neck, removing the one he put on for me. In the back I heard Hashey ask Hoobs what I was doing. Before he could turn around I threw the tag at him as hard as I could. It bounced off of his helmet, after hitting him square on the back of the head, and hit the ground. I was basically telling him to go fuck himself, and it sounded like message received on his part, as he called out to deaf ears.

* * *

Finding Bull was probably the best thing that happened to him for the next 3 days. After letting me have the standard one day cooling off period, he tried his best to get me to talk to him. In the end, Gene told him to drop it, because it was annoying him and he wasn't getting any where with me.

"Denver Randelman, the next time you go missing I will hunt you down and kick your ass." I called to him, sewing up a hole in Heff's uniform for him.

"Guess you won't want these then." he hollared back. I looked up curiously, using my teeth to break the cotton on the needle. He was holding out two medic satchels, filled to the brim. My mouth fell open a little.

"We've been worrying about you all night, and that's what you were doing? Honestly Denver!" I joked as Heff and I trotted up to the bear like man. He held out both satchels, Heff taking one and me taking the other. Rifling through, there were a lot of aid kits, plus German ones.

"Dude!" I gasped, pulling some of the stuff out, "Thanks Bull!"

"Well you asked.. kind of a strange request if ya ask me."

"I asked you to find me some kits... if you go missing first.. just come back, 'kay?" I smiled as he ruffled my hair.

"See, I always liked this kid." He grinned down at me.

"C'mon Heff, lets take these to Gene." I said to the tall red head beside me. I just wanted to get away from Hoobs. I couldn't bare his stare.

* * *

"C'mon Doc, just let me see her!" I heard him beg Gene one day, while I was in the back of the aid station, humming to Madcon's Beggin'. What a fitting song, I thought to myself.

"Hoobler, I said no! Now leave before I get real mad."

* * *

Later that night, I was sleeping in between Web and McLung, at the bottom of a haystack, when he came and woke me and Web up.

"This better be good, I was just falling asleep." Webster threatened light-heartedly. I simply glared daggers, of which he avoided.

"Sleeping out side is for losers." he smiled his lopsided smile at Web, catching my eye too. I couldn't help but blush, and I had to hide my own smile. That was the thing that made me melt about Hoobs, aside from his cute little ears. Web, McLung and I followed Hoobs to the little barn we were sleeping close to, Division had commandeered it for HQ. A Dutch farmer came out and after having a few words with him, he disappeared, coming back with a few jars of food. I rolled my eyes; they were always thinking about food.

The farmer told us he'd been down in the shelter with his family since the first planes came over, thinking we were Germans. Just then, there was a noise from the shelter, and the sweetest little boy came out. He stood there for a moment, looking at us with a shy smile, before his dad told him it was okay. He watched us curiously and carefully, with a more confident smile. We watched him back for a moment, each with our own little smiles.

"Ciggaretten?" Hoobs offered the farmer. As he replied, Web and I walked over to his son. He smiled up at the two of us, as we crouched down before him. I never thought Web would be so good with kids, but as I watched him pull out a bar of chocolate for the little boy, my heart began to glow. Everyone knew Hoobs was great with children, and he told a lot of people he wanted a huge family when this was all over, but Web was a dark horse.

The child's father, opened up the wrapper for him, and when the boy took a bite from the corner, his little brown orbs opened wider in pleasant surprise.

"He never tasted chocolate."

We both smiled at the child, "Tastes good, huh?"

I pulled my helmet off, to scratch my head, when the little boy opened his eye wider than before. I'd done hair taping, so a braid was more or less sewn on to my head with ribbon. It was convenient; I could put my helmet over it, and it didn't fly into my face, like my pony tail did. The only loose bits of hair, was my fringe and the bits in front of my ears. He reached out, letting the loose bits slip through his tiny fingers. He must have been surprised to see a woman in a uniform.

"You look like his mother." I heard his father say softly, as Hoobs and McLung came closer. I was almost in a trance, as the boy and I watched each other curiously.

"Your wife must be real pretty." McLung told the farmer.

"Oh she was.. she died last year." he replied sadly, watching his son yawn. I took the chocolate from my pocket, handing it to the farmer.

"For both of you."

"Thank you." he smiled. "Come, Markle, time to sleep."

"Is that his name?" the farmer nodded. "It's nice.."

Markle protested. It looked like he didn't want to leave me. He must have thought I was his mother.

"I'll take him.. seems like he doesn't want me to go..."

Truth be told, I had a real soft spot for kids, and I couldn't disappoint this little boy. I really did feel for him. The farmer nodded, and I held my arms out to him. The little boy's face lit up, reaching out to me, as I picked him up and carried him away down the stairs. Before I got to the bottom, I heard footsteps behind me, but it wasn't his father.

"Just in case." Hoobs said, as I frowned at him.

* * *

I set the boy down on his bed, laying him down and kneeling so I was the same height as him. Stroking his hair, I listened as Hoobs started singing Hushabye Mountain, softly, as he sat next to me. I joined in after a while, and it wasn't long until Markle fell to sleep. I yawned too, finding myself falling asleep. Without thinking, Hoobs picked me up, and I let him. He carried me on his back, up the stairs and to Web and McLung. The farmer smiled at us, as I drifted off.

"Idiot fell asleep too."

"Hoobs." I whined into his neck as he carried on walking with me on his back. He chuckled softly, gently rubbing my legs with his thumbs in circular motions.

"Mylove you."

"I love you too Beau."

"I'm still mad."

"I know you are."

"Good."


	10. Are We Good?

**Are We Good?**

Firstly, sorry I haven't updated for ages! I've been bogged down at college, and I'm trying to write The Proper Story for this, I don't remember if I mentioned this before, but this is just so you understand things between the Hoobs and Beau. Secondly it's not very long, because I'm trying to write 2 stories, and I'm writing some chapters for a collaboration story called Group Therapy

Anyway, sorry for the wait, R&R please :)

Allie

* * *

"What do you mean you don't want to talk to me?"

"Are you really that stupid, or are you making a special effort today?"

"You were talking to me last night though!"

"I was half asleep!"

Hoobs and I were having a bust up. Again. I was mad at him before, but now I was even angrier than before. He thought he could get back in my good books just like that, without an apology? No chance.

"So, you didn't mean what you said?"

"Of course I did, you know I love you, but you keep on being... well.. horrible to me and I'm tired. You can't just assume I'm going to forgive you every time you treat me like a doormat... we are touch and go, Hoobler. You fuck this last chance up, that's the end of us."

"You don't mean that."

"Oh yes I do." I hissed, stopping just before I got to the door of the barn. I poked him in the chest, watching his eyebrows disappear into his helmet. "Last chance to make it up with me and stop being an ass."

There was a bark from behind me, just before he opened his mouth to speak. I laughed as Trigger, Tab's dog, jumped up and knocked me over, licking my face.

"Eww Trig! I know where that tongue has been!"

"Aww, don't be so mean Sunny! We used Perco's tooth brush to clean his teeth to try and make his breath smell nicer!" George called over to me, before Perco shot his a look that could kill. It sent me into a huge laughing fit, and even Dick cracked a smile at me.

"Yeah, yeah, fuck you George!"

"Yeah, fuck you George!" I chimed in, letting Hoobs pull me off the floor. "This is a hell of a dog Tab."

"Thanks Sunny."

"Why do you guys call me that?"

"Because you're always happy." Perco called to me, half way through brushing his teeth. I shrugged, as if to say 'well that makes sense' and plonked myself down in some hay, Hoobs sitting by my side. Even if I was still mad at him, I was glad of his company; I had really missed him.

"I'm not always happy. I just don't show you when I'm sad... much." I yawned, resting my head on Hoobs' shoulder, as Tab's dog rested his head on my stomach.

"If I stop being an ass, will you stop being mad at me."

I nodded, tiredly, and drifted off, as Hoobs planted a small kiss on my head.

* * *

I was woken suddenly, later on, as Joege and some of the guys burst through the door, with an injured Ally with them. Jumping to my feet, I rushed over to Ally.

"Elevate the leg." I ordered, as Gene and I began to work on him.

"I'm going with Winters. You'll be okay?" Hoobs told me, standing just behind me, as I cut Ally's trouser leg. I nodded, and with a kiss on the cheek he left, racing after his friends to get the Krauts back.

Finally, we got him to an aid station. I was so frustrated that I couldn't do anything. If I was supposed to be a traiteuse, I wasn't doing a very good job at it.

* * *

Gene, Spina and I waited until the next day, for the guys to come back. I saw a few of them in the aid station, before we went back to our squads. Boyle had been hit, and so had Web. Dukeman, I found out the worst way, by having to pull back the sheet laying over him, had died. Killed instantly.

"They got me. That's what I shouted. They got me."

"Oh God Web, talk about cliché." I grinned, rolling my eyes as I cleaned his wound.

"How you doin' Web?" Hoobs' voice broke through our banter.

"All the better for having a pretty girl bandage me up." he winked at me.

"Hey, no flirting with the nurses that are taken." I mock-scolded, wagging my finger at the Harvard Boy.

"Yeah, what she said." Hoobs joined in. I laughed, giving him a playful shove, and after finishing up with Web, I went outside for a smoke break with Hoobs. We watched as German prisoners marched past us. A couple shot me a glance and slowed down a little, that was, until a familiar voice barked for them to hurry up and get moving.

"Joege? How come you're guarding the prisoners?" I asked, walking with him a little to hand him a cigarette.

"Winters, but he took my ammo." he whispered, putting his mouth to my ear.

"Why?" I mouthed. In turn, the lanky Jew just shrugged, so I patted him and let him get on with his job. When I turned around I saw Dick talking to Hoobs.

"Sir." I nodded when he turned around.

"Molly-Anne. How are you?"

"Better than the other day sir. Just wish I could have done something for Dukeman... how about you sir?"

He just nodded, patted my shoulder and left, turning around for a moment.

"We're on a rescue mission tonight, so get some rest. There may be some wounded." I rolled my eyes, with a 'yes sir' and watched the poor guy slink off.

"Poor Winters." I heard Hoobs say behind me. I felt his arms wrap around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder.

"I know, he looks really tired."

"So do you."

"You do too, but you're not running the company."

* * *

I waited for hours for the guys to come back and the suspense was killing me. I'd bitten all of my nails, right down to the skin. Jumping from the shock of the barn door flying open and from the sharp little pain, as I drew blood from my finger, having bitten the skin.

"Well I think that went brilliantly!" rang the unmistakable accent of a true British soldier. I sighed with relief as they all piled into the barn. Dick wouldn't be able to make it because of his paper work, but everyone else was here.

"Sir, are any of your men wounded?" Nix's voice asked. I looked down from my perch to see the two stood directly underneath me, and the rest of the boys standing around talking.

"No, not one, but thank you for asking."

"That's good, I think our nurse is getting fed up of being knee deep in blood today."

I jumped down, walking up behind the two startled officers. Saluting them both I stood patiently waiting for their brains to start working again.

"Colonel Dobie, this is our nurse, Molly-Anne Beauclaire."

"Nice to meet you Miss Beauclaire."

"Nice to meet you too sir, and please even my CO calls me Moll."

"You're British?"

We had a nice little conversation about where we're from and our families, before Lip came over.

"Hoobs is looking for you."

I groaned, "He's always looking for me."

I shook my head, rolling my eyes at Lip, as I walked off to find Hoobs.

"Who's Hoobs, if you don't mind me asking?" I heard Dobie say to Lip.

"Well, apparently, he's her wife... it's a long story."

* * *

I found Hoobs, with Bull, Hashey and Perco, sitting with a few Tommies.

"Ah! Here she is! Easy's little lady."

"Perco, I'm almost taller than you.."

"Fuck you."

Hoobs snorted loudly, like a kid and I slapped him up side the head.

"You're like a teenager!" He smirked, "Don't even say it Hoobs."

"Sorry ma'am." he smirked, pulling me on to his lap. I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Now who's immature?" Bull grinned.

"He's in the bad books, so he has to behave. I can't be in my own bad books, so I'm allowed to be immature."

The guys 'ohh'ed at Hoobs, Bull slapping him heartily on the back with a wide grin and a cigar between his teeth.

"So why's he in the bad books?" one of the Tommies asked.

"He's an arse hole."

"Well that makes sense." he replied.

"He came to find me though." Bull said, trying to put in a good word for him.

"Still an arse."

"So, I'm not a hole, just an ass?"

"Yes."

"Little harsh don't you think?"

"Yeah... it's not harsh enough!"

"You're a fuck head, you know that?"

"Says you!" I argued, sticking my tongue at him.

"Oh here we go, another domestic!" Perco groaned rolling his eyes.

"I'm not as bad as Perco, though."

"Well, if I wasn't sleeping with you, the answer would be no, but because I am, and you piss me the fuck off, the answer is yes."

"I hate you."

"Not what you said the other night."

I bit down hard on my bottom lip to keep me from laughing at Hoobs' displeased expression. We opted to leave the party, so no one would have to hear us bicker.

* * *

We sat together, outside in the cool night, on a haystack. Hoobs pulled me on to his lap, and held me tight.

I began scratching my arms violently, after a while. I was allergic to hay, and it make me come up in little red patches of dry skin, kind of like allergically charged exma.

"Stop scratching, you're like a dog!"

My mouth formed an 'o' shape, as I slapped Hoobs on the arm.

"Gee thanks sweetie pie." I replied sarcastically. He smirked, pressing his sweet, cheeky lips to mine.

"Wanna roll around in the hay?"

"No, it's because of the hay that I'm 'like a dog'."

He pouted, displeased, "What about the grass?"

"No Hoobs." I told him rolling my eyes.

"At least kiss me?"

"Now that, I have no objection to." I smiled, leaning in to kiss him. He grinned up at me, wrapping a hand around the back of my head and one around my waist, pulling me into a long kiss, the first proper one in days. He ran his hands through my hair; I always loved how it felt.

"I love you." I whispered against his mouth, in between kisses.

"I love you too. We good now?"

I pulled him over, so he was laying above me, instead of replying.

"I'm taking that as a yes."


	11. Men Aren't Supposed To Use The Ladies

**Men Aren't Supposed To Use The Ladies Loo.**_  
_

* * *

_Dancing down the streets of Rechamps with George in my mind, I know I have to go back. I have to go back to my boys, to my company, to my Hoobler. I sneak out when the nurse if off duty, but I come running into Charlie._

"_Shit!" I hiss, taking a few steps back. She shakes her head, but motions me to follow her. I do just that and we run down the unlit corridors to the back of the hospital. There's a jeep waiting out side, engine running, ready to take me back to the line._

"_Well I couldn't keep you here forever... Tell Malark I said hi." she admits, hugging me good bye and before I go, she hands me a bag. It's filled with chocolate and cigarettes, enough for all the boys. I return the smile, as I leap into the jeep and we drive off into the night, leaving a trail of dust behind._

* * *

"Finally, I can put my old clothes on for a while!" I sighed happily, throwing myself onto my bed. I was in the middle of Hoobs and George, and we'd picked the best beds in the barracks. We'd recently come off the line and we were in Mourmelon for R&R. It felt so good to sleep in a proper bed for a change, instead of the usual, cold and damp fox hole, with a collection of worms at the bottom.

I even got a shower. That topped everything off perfectly.

I'd missed the feel of the hot water rolling down and off my body, how it felt when I rubbed shampoo into my long, dirty red hair. Some people take this for granted; not me. I savoured everything about it. I pulled my now too long hair through my fingers. I really needed to cut it, it was beginning to become unmanageable.

"You should ask Joe to cut your hair."

I jumped a mile out of my skin, alarmed at Hoobs sudden presence in my little world.

"God Hoobs!"

"I could say the same thing about you." he smirked, watching me from where the water couldn't get him.

"Why is it when I want you around, you aren't here and when I don't you are here... well, now that you are here, you can wash my shoulders."

I sighed, as Hoobs stepped under the water, rubbing the soap into my tense shoulder muscles. At that moment I was just looking for comfort.

* * *

Walking into barracks later, I found that the mail had caught up with the guys, and they were all laying around reading their letters from their loved ones. George threw me a letter, which surprised me, I have to say.

_Hey there Sunny!_

_It's us girlies! Betcha weren't expecting a letter from us huh? We know you don't have any family of your own, so we've volunteered to be your sisters, nice of us, ehy?_

_So anyway, we hope you're okay, we've been sent over to Holland, so we may bump into each other. We've taken over an aid station, but we don't want to see you here, unless you're not hurt. You keep that Yank of yours out of here too! And our Yanks!_

_We hope to see you soon 'sis'_

_Love_

_Charlie, Hazel and Marnie_

_xxx_

I grinned, sadly, placing the letting in my bag. George raised his eye brows at me, but I didn't answer.

"I'm going for a walk."

"We'll come with you." Perco and George said, obviously wanting to get to the bottom of my strange mood.

* * *

Truth be told, I was a little jealous. I had no blood family, I was alone. I couldn't write my parents telling them how funny George was, or how Shifty was my best friend, or how Hoobs was the love of my life. I couldn't tell them I was scared either, and if I told the guys, I didn't think they'd understand.

"Just think of it this way Sunny," Perco suggested, "One day, you'll have your own house, husband-"

"Hoobs." George coughed.

"Kids-"

"Hoobs."

"Luz shut up." Perco snapped, hitting him on the head. "All I'm saying is that one day, you'll have your family. Sure, you'll still be an orphan, but you'll have everything else."

I had to laugh; I knew he was trying to make me feel better, but he wasn't doing a very good job.

"Thanks Perco... it's just.. I can't go to anyone here and tell them that sometimes I'm scared, if I had parents, I'd feel better telling them."

"Uhh, Molls, you just told us..."

"Shit.."

My two friends laughed, and said they understood. Turning a corner, we bumped into Leib.

"Hey I was just looking for you guys, apparently they're giving out over night passes."

"When?" George asked curiously.

"Later I think." he shrugged, about to walk off.

"Wait! Joege!" I called after him. He turned, taking a drag on his cigarette. "Can you cut my hair for me?"

* * *

"It's not that short."

"It is."

"Beau, it looks fine."

"Don't you lie to me Donald Brenton Hoobler. It's a mess."

"I'm not lying. It looks fine."

"I look like I have hamster cheeks. I've never looked like that."

Hoobs rolled his eyes, taking a seat on his bed. Joe had really messed up my hair. It came just under my ears and it wasn't even cut straight.

I was going to kill Joe.

"What the fuck happened? You don't usually cut my hair this short! Are you high?"

"What?" he asked, spaced out. Fuck wit.

"Forget it! Just remember Joe. I will get you for this." I hissed up close to his face. He looked alarmed, and backed away.

"S-sorry Sunny."

"You'd better be. I should have asked Shifty." I said moodily, picking up the scissors and stomping out.

Shifty had to cut it really short, and although it was longer than George's hair, still letting me look feminine, I was mistaken for a guy.. at a distance.

* * *

"Soldier where do you think you're going?" an icy voice called from behind me. I knew it to be Lieutenant Ronald Speirs. The guy was as cold as ice. Colder in fact. The guy was so bad ass, I was pretty sure he could scare off Dracula.. if we were ever sent to Transylvania.. which I doubted we would be. But we'd be pretty much okay.

"To the loo, sir?" I replied, calmly, resting one hand on the door and pointing at it with my other thumb.

"That's for women." he told me, his steely gaze boring holes into my body.

"I know sir, it'd hardly look fitting for a girl to go to the blokes loos would it sir?" I answered, turning around. His gaze turned colder, and I swear I was beginning to feel a cold draft.

"And it wouldn't look any better for a man to go to the women's toilet, would it soldier?"

I looked around, down the corridor and then back at Speirs, who'd not changed the unimpressed and ready to kill me expression on his face.

"Sir, were you going to come in here?"

"What?" he baulked, looking astonished.

"I mean, if you really needed the toilet I'd keep an eye out."

And that, it how I ended up in Dick's office with Lew and Welshy, who thought the whole thing was hilarious.

* * *

"What did you do now Beauclaire?" Dick asked with a grin, which was of late, rare.

"He wouldn't let me go to the loo."

"Men can't use the women's bathroom." Spiers told me, annoyed.

"So what were you doing outside them then?" I asked, exasperatedly. "Sir." I added, as I caught his gaze.

"Ah."

"What?"

"There seems to be a misunderstanding." Dick smiled softly. The two of us looked at him curiously.

"She's a girl Ron." smirked Lew.

"What?"

"It's Molly-Anne." Harry laughed, hysterical.

"What?!"

"Yeah, what he said! What's so funny?" I pouted.

"He thought you were a guy." Harry laughed. I jumped back, my mouth dropping open. The fact that I was with George a lot was a benefit; my acting was getting better.

"Me! A man! I don't care if he's an officer, how dare you sir!" I cried dramatically. Harry was rolling around in his arm chair, Lew was choking on his VAT69 and Dick just rolled his eyes at me.

"Would you calm down?" Dick asked, smirking.

"Never! I've never been so insulted. I'll never live this down!"

"Would you calm down if I gave you two weekend passes?"

I turned, quietly, looking.. conspirational.

"Maybe. What's your story morning glory?"

"Two passes for the weekend, for you and whom ever you choose." he told me, holding the passes out to me. I chewed my bottom lip, pretending to think about it.

"Done." I told him, taking the passes quickly.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Lew smirked, taking a swag from his hip flask.

"You mean like a nice romantic dinner, with flowers and wine?" I winked. "Should I just take my mess cup and Hoobs, tell him to get some whiskey and we can stay in the hotel room all weekend?"

"You've grown up so fast." he joked, pretending to cry. I stuck my tongue out at him as I walked to the door.

"Adios amigos... and sirs."

"See ya Moll. Oh and if you see Marlene Deitrich in town-"

"Lock up the guys?"

"Get her autograph..." Harry told me.

"Yessir!"

"Oh, Molly-Anne? What did happen to your hair?" Dick asked, sorting through his paper work.

"Joe Leibgott."

He gave me a look that said it all.

"You're an idiot." Lew grinned, as I opened the door.

"Yup." I nodded. I threw them all a salute, and walked out.

* * *

"How about this one?" I asked.

"Nope, the 82nd are there." George told us walking right past the second hotel. We'd been wandering around for ages looking for a decent place to spend the night. Eventually we found a decent place (well what ever was decent in George's standards). It was nice really. Not big, but not small. No officers, no 82nders. Just us Easies.

We got settled in, I, opting for a change, threw on a skirt that matched the guys uniforms and then out we went, Joe Toye, Perco, Skip, Pink, Lark, Bull and Hashey all behind George. We spent almost as long looking for a place to drink, as we did looking for a place to stay. Eventually we found one. George and the boys deemed it 'perfect', I wasn't so sure. I just wanted a cup of tea, and no place would be perfect unless the did tea. Imagine how surprised and happy I was, when Joe came back from the bar, with a tray of tea.

"Tea for the lady!" He grinned, taking a place on my right. My face turned from a sour expression to a bright grin.

"Aww Joe! Thank you!" I said as I hugged the life out of him.

"Careful Hoobs, you might have some competition." George winked at him. Hoobs just scowled at him, and I took his hand. I shook my head at George, wagging a finger.

"Oh no, I'm sticking to Hoobs like glue. He'll never get rid of me."

"Ah fuck."

"Hey, no one wants to know what you two do in your spare time!"

We all laughed loudly, attracting the attention of some other soldiers. The 82nders.


	12. Drunken Nights and Zombie Apocalypses

**Drunken nights out and Zombie apocalypses.**

****Thanks to those of you who take the time to review, and the ever loyal Becca (Farm Girl), who's always reviewing my work, I hope you're feeling better! Maybe this will help, R&R please guys!

* * *

"Hey, what is the eagle screaming on the 101st's patch?"

"Help me help me!"

Our table glared over at the 82nd boys, knowing they were pissing us off.

"At least the 101st know how to make a girl scream." came a sudden Cockney voice from behind us. Both tables looked round to see my 'sisters'.

"Guys!" I grinned, as the girls pulled up some chairs.

"Sunny!" Charlie grinned. Charlie really was my best friend, I'd never had a friend like her.

"I thought you'd come a'callin'."

"Well, we heard you were in town. Hey Lark." she smiled, kissing him quickly on the lips as she sat on his knee. I could see the two of them blush and I chuckled.

"Hmm, I think you're stalking us."

"You wish."

"Shaddap Charlotte." I told her, sticking my tongue out at her. She promptly flipped me off, and I countered by blowing her a kiss.

"Love you too Charlie."

The other table was still saying things about us and the 101st, and the boys were getting pissed.

"C'mon guys, let's find some place where the big boys are." George announced, standing up.

"Yeah, no one wants to sit with the babies." I winked at him.

"Whatever little girl, least I could show you a good time." one of the other soldiers smirked. Hoobs stepped forward.

"Get your own girl asshole."

"Yeah, what he said."

He said something else, and the rally continued until Hoobs hit a sore spot. The soldier stood, grabbed his little espresso cup and threw it at him. I pushed him out of the way, but the cup hit me where my crescent scar was.

"Fucking twice!" I cried, echoing Joe Toye's words in Normandy, as I held my eye, at it burned from the boiling hot coffee.

"Fucking Christ John! You hit her!" his friend shouted at him. He hadn't said anything since my little group sat down and the barrage started, but now he seemed to seep anger. He hit his friend over the head, before he came over to me, kneeling down as Hoobs and the guys got in a huge fight with them.

"Are you alright ma'am?"

I nodded, even though every one knew I wasn't. He told Marnie to fetch some water, ice and a cloth napkin, and when she came back, he wrapped it all up and pressed it to my face. So far, Bull had been watching the whole thing from afar, but when the guys had been fighting for a few minutes, he stepped in between the two main instigators; the guy called John and Hoobs. He puffed his chest out, making him look as big as possible. John backed down, and when he did, his friends did. John stared at Bull for a moment, then at Hoobs, before he turned and stalked off, spitting out the blood from his busted lip.

* * *

While the guy who had fixed my face helped me up, Hoobs and the gang came back.

"You okay baby?"

I still had the cold compress held to my face, but I nodded.

"Yeah, thanks to..." I realised I didn't even know my helper's name.

"Jesse. Jesse Franklin."

Hoobs looked at the two of us, before he shook his hand gratefully.

"Thanks, thanks a bunch."

"It's not a problem, besides, being a medic means you have to deal with burns too."

"Oh fuck.." I groaned.

"Don't worry, it won't scar, but it'll be sore for a while."

I nodded, "Thanks Jesse... how come you didn't jump in with your friends, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Ah, he's an ass. Besides, why should I pick fights with someone who's on the same side as me?"

"I like this guy, he's got a brain." Perco nodded, looking at George.

"Damn right." George nodded too.

"Why don't you come for a drink with us? Consider it as a thanks." Hoobs suggested. He nodded, thanking him for the offer, and we all left, after Jesse had paid the owner for the cup John broke. To say the fight was like a miniature skirmish, it was only the espresso cup what had been broken.

* * *

We found a nice quiet bar to drink in, and we all sat around, telling stories that mad us laugh, stories that made us sad, we even had stories we couldn't believe.

"What was that one you were talking about that day?" Hazel mused, sipping her drink.

"About my auntie?"

"Yeah! That one, you never told us!" She grinned.

"What about your auntie?" George asked, arm around Marnie.

"Well, before I came to Toccoa, I'd been out with my auntie, who was 4 months pregnant. So, we came in, and I set my shopping bags on this arm chair in the corner of the room. Now, since we bought the chair, none of us has ever sat in it, ever. So, I start to walk into the kitchen through the double doors next to the chair. Now, I'm about 5 paces into the kitchen, when all of a sudden, I hear some crying."

Everyone seemed to lean forward during the telling of the story, Hoobs, who'd already heard the story, was leaning back slightly, with a small smile on his face.

"Then what?" Charlie urged.

"Well, I ran into the room, and found my Auntie crying her eyes out. I had no idea what she was crying for, so I sat her down and once she was calmer I asked her what she was crying for."

"So what was she crying for?" Jesse asked, wanting me to get to the point.

"Well, she's sat there and I say, why are you crying, so she looks at me, dead in the eye, and says 'no one ever sits in that chair, we're stopping it from living out it's destiny!'"

Our group laughed in complete disbelief. I remembered telling my mother about it, and she cried with laughter.

* * *

As the evening wore on, a band began to play in the bar. I danced with a few of the guys, including Jesse, as Hoobs watched, content with drinking at the bar. When the band had finished, the owner put the radio on, and my favourite song came on; Ella Johnson's Please Mr Johnson.

"Hoobs, dance with me."

I took the glass that he was about to put to his lips, and I set it on the side of the bar, taking his hands.

"Yes ma'am." he said softly, following me on the floor. We swayed and swirled happily, lost in out little world while our friends looked on.

* * *

"**Look at those two, soppy bastards." George joked, taking a swag of his drink, while wrapping his arm around Marnie. Marnie rolled her eyes at her boyfriend.**

"**At least he knows how to treat her."**

"**Are you suggesting that George Luz doesn't know how to treat a lady?"**

"**I'm not suggesting anything sweetie." she told him, sticking her tongue out at him.**

"**Ah shut it you two, after all the shit Sobel put 'er through, it's nice to see she's got someone to look after her." Malark piped up.**

"**Sobel?" Jesse asked the red head curiously.**

"**Our ex-CO. Used to put her in this tiny room on base, lock her in there all night, or longer."**

"**Sonnovva bitch." Perconte mumbled contemptuously.**

"**C'mon Frank, I'd like to dance too." Hazel soothed her short tempered man. They joined Hoobler and Molly-Anne on the dance floor, and soon after that Marnie and George and Charlie and Malark joined them too.**

**Jesse, Joe, Skip, Pink and Bull, having no one to dance with stayed at the bar. The Easies agreed that Jesse, considering he was from the 82nd, was okay, and they took him in like they did Babe, which was when Jesse's CO walked in.**

"**Franklin."**

"**Sir." the soldier nodded curtly. He left momentarily with his CO, before coming back on his own. **

"**What was that all about?" Joe asked, taking another drink from the bar keeper.**

"**I put in for a transfer a few months ago."**

"**And?" Skip urged.**

"**I got it."**

"**That's good news for you then huh?"**

**Jesse nodded, a tiny smirk on his lips.**

"**So, where'd you transfer to?" Pink questioned, although he wasn't really paying attention.**

"**101st... Easy Company."**

* * *

"Your cheek still hurt?" Hoobs mumbled into my hair, as we swayed to the music on the radio.

"Not so much."

"Good."

After a few moments of silence between us, I spoke up.

"You don't mind it, do you?"

"Don't mind what?"

"My funny eye."

"Baby, you'd be gorgeous what ever happened to you. You're personality is what got me, your being drop dead fucking gorgeous is just a bonus."

"You'd say that if you were blind Hoobs." I chuckled softly, as he bent his head down to my shoulder, burying his face in the crook of my neck.

"You know I mean it... why do you always smell of marzipan and chocolate?"

I snorted, earning me a slap on the butt. I yelped a little, not too loudly mind.

"What was that for?" I asked, moving away and rubbing my sore spot.

"I was asking you a question, and you laughed. It was mean." he pouted like a child.

"You know when I say you're immature... it's right there." I grinned, pinching his sweet little cheek as he smiled.

"You love it. But you do."

"Do what?"

"Smell like marzipan and chocolate."

"Oh.. is that good or bad?" I asked, holding his arm as we walked back to the bar to get a drink and talk to the guys.

"Well, yes and no."

"Oh good grief, what do you mean yes and no?"

"Well, it's one of my favourite things about you, because I love the smell of marzipan and chocolate.. but you don't taste like it."

"I'm a human, Hoobs, I should imagine I taste like bacon.. if you turned to cannibalism and cooked and ate me."

"Baby, you're a little strange." he smirked, adding. "If you don't taste like marzipan and chocolate, you're not going to taste like bacon."

"Well, I guess if you ever turn to cannibalism or turn into a zombie, I won't have to worry about you trying to eat me."

"A zombie?"

"Undead flesh eating being. Like dead people come back to life."

"Yeah I know what one is."

* * *

"Know what what is?" Frank asked, as I slipped into my seat (which was good, seeing as I usually slipped **off** my seat).

"A zombie. So, you know what one is, but do you have a plan?"

"A zombie plan?" Charlie asked, sidling up next to me, a drink in each hand.

"Yeah."

"I have one." Hazel chipped in.

"You do?"

"Sure. I'm going to lock myself where they put the limbs from amputations, and throw them as far as I can, so they'll eat those, and I can run away."

I nodded. Many a nights we'd spent in the house, discussing post apocalyptic scenarios and what we'd do. What? I'm not your average girl.

"What about yours?" Jesse joined in the discussion too.

"I have 38 zombie plans. 37 of those are me using who ever's pissed me off-"

"Joe." The guys chorused.

"-As bait, and me running away." I continued.

"What's your 38th?" George questioned.

"Me getting turned into a zombie so I can tear him apart and eat his fleshy goodness."

"You," Hoobs said, poking my nose, "Are fucking scary."

"And you're the one having sex with me."

"Someone's gotta do it." Joe snorted behind me. My mouth dropped in surprise and amusement.

"Hey, only I can insult Beau!"

"Donald Brenton Hoobler! No you can't!"

"You want me to let him abuse you?"

"No, I was just saying, you're not meant to insult me. Remember, I'm the medic."

* * *

"Ehy, guys, Jesse's got something to say." Joe announced later on. Jesse explained that he had transferred, and even though we'd all just met, we were glad to have him with us. We celebrated for a few more hours, before most of us left.

George and I, who'd had a bit too much, decided to attempt the cha cha cha, dancing around the empty streets on our way back to our hotel. Marnie and Hoobs just laughed, even as we both took a tumble onto the floor.

Hoobs helped both of us up, and Joe had to help carry George up the stairs. What a night. Zombies, cannibals and bacon. This was something to remember.


	13. Chemical Reactions & Ghandi's Flip Flops

**Chemical Reactions & Ghandi's Flip Flops.**

****Argh, sorry I haven't updated for a while (well about a week) I hope you'll enjoy this little chapter, the Bois Jacques woods really are creepy at night, I was watching Al Murray's Road to Berlin the other day and he was sat in one of Easy's old fox holes in the middle of the night. The lantern he had didn't seem to do much, the dark seemed to swallow the light up.. Anyway, I hope you enjoy R&R please :)

* * *

"Hoobs?" I questioned, swinging my legs as I sat on the bed.

"Yeah?" he called from the bathroom.

"Did you know love is a chemical reaction?"

"No, I did not... guess ours must be a really violent one."

"Why?"

"Because I love you a lot. A hell of a lot."

I smiled to myself, nibbling my fingers, waiting for him to come out of the loo. I bounced on the bed, before I decided (or rather my stomach decided) that it wasn't good to drink all that booze and then bounce on the bed, so I stopped.

"Hoobs?"

"Yeah Beau?"

"I feel.. sick..."

"Why don't you listen when I tell you things?"

"You do the exact same!" I gasped, running to the toilet. I coughed up all the booze I'd spent drinking in the bar, thinking to myself what a waste of time and money it was, seeing as it'd all gone down the loo. I groaned, as Hoobs rubbed my back.

"It's a good job I love you, huh?" he chuckled. I managed to turn and glare at him, but he just smiled weakly. I must admit, talking down the great white telephone most of the night, while the love of your life is rubbing your back, isn't the most romantic night we've spent together, but it was nice in that he was there.

"It's a damn good job.. I look rancid."

"No you don't!" he laughed, kissing the top of my sweat laced forehead. I groaned at the loudness. How I can get hungover when I haven't been to sleep, I don't know. Finally, when I was done taking a techni-colour yawn down the porcelain telephone, I was helped up by Hoobs, holding me as I brushed my teeth. He even help me put my pyjamas on.

"I don't know what you're complaining for, you're beautiful Beau." he sighed, almost annoyed as he kissed me.

"I have a mouth like Ghandi's flip flop, Hoobs. I look awful and I feel it, I have a very good reason."

"Whatever, you're still beautiful to me."

"You're only saying that because you want more than a cuddle in bed." I pouted coyly.

He smirked against my lips, picking me up so that I could wrap my legs around his waist, and he squeezed my behind.

"You can read me like a book baby."

"It's because you're my other half of ripped paper."

* * *

Waking up in the morning, I found my lips already engulfed by someone else's.

"Morning." Hoobs grinned, pulling away. I grinned back, watching him study my face as he leaned above me.

"Best wake up call ever. Of all time."

"I aim to please."

"Good... I feel like shit..."

"You look it... I mean, you look ill, not ugly!"

I stared up at Hoobs, raising an eyebrow.

"I wasn't going to say I was..." I told him, sitting up on my elbows, as he pushed himself up, trying to make amends as he went.

"I'm in trouble... right?"

"Not unless you can make me feel better by the end of the day."

"Done!" he gave me a mock salute, before he kissed me on the head. He reached out for my hand, and began toying with my incredibly small fingers. "Do you want anything?"

"Just some water, if you wouldn't mind."

He left and came back with a small glass of water not long after.

"You're the best."

"I know."

I chuckled, laying back down into the soft and warm bed. It was so comfy, I could have drooled. Actually, I think I did. I fell asleep with Hoobs stroking my hair, tucking some behind my exposed ear.

"You know," he whispered as I drifted off, "I'll love you forever and a day, but you gotta listen to me, I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."

* * *

After we'd returned to the base, we caught up with some of the guys.

"So how was your weekend?" Joege asked, eating an apple.

"I threw up the whole of Friday night."

"Nice Sunny."

"Then I felt like crap the rest of the day.. My cousin once went out to Vegas, and she got that drunk, she fell over on the floor when she got back to the hotel room and just slept there. In her own sick..."

"I bet she had didn't have anyone running around for her."

"You said I looked like shit. You deserved to be made to run around... anyway, the only thing I asked you for was a glass of water."

"Fair enough."

"What did you do then Joege?" I asked, picking at some grass. He shrugged almost boredly.

"Pretty much the same, only I didn't have someone running around for me."

"Aww, well next time you're ill, I'll look after you." I smiled, leaning over to hug him. "Tab, if you don't get your eyes off my ass, there's going to be trouble."

* * *

Later, after getting a (less than voluntary) piggy back from my guy, we walked back to the house I'd been re-billited in. Apparently it was so that they could keep an eye on me.

"What do you feel like doing today?" He asked, as I rested my head against his.

"Today.. I feel like doing nothing... except you. I'd do you." I told him frankly, nibbling the top of his ear. He whimpered a little, clearly pleased at my actions.

"Can't you wait til we get to your room?"

"I'm not worried 'bout me lasting. I'm worried 'bout you." I smiled, listening as he gasped slightly, as I bit down a little harder.

"You're such an ass!"

* * *

Trying to get up, I found an arm wrapped tightly around my waist.

"You're not going out there alone."

I looked at Frank, and then at George.

"Why?"

"What if something happens to you?"

"Oh good grief, have you noticed where we are? We're in a fox hole, covered over with some tarpaulin. You think that's going to stop me getting hurt?"

We'd moved out to Bastogne a few days ago. We were shelled regularly, we were surrounded (as paratroopers should be) but because of that, the only place casualties could go, was the town of Bastogne. We couldn't get supply trucks through either, so ammo was restricted, as was medical supplies, since all the shit that was flying round and someone was bound to get hit. Some of those who'd been hit, refused morphine from us, so we could save it for people who'd been hit worse than them. To connect all the dots, it was fucking fru-eeeeeeezing! It was colder than a witch's nipple, and because we were surrounded (seems that the whole paratroopers gig wasn't very convenient at times) we didn't have any winter kits. Yeah, we had coats, well most of us did, I had the exact same shit on as Babe did, and we were fucking freezing, and that was with our jump gloves and scarves.

Hoobs blinked a few times, before he slowly removed his arm. As I was walking away, I heard Perco say, "Man, you really got it bad for her."

Walking around the almost empty forest, I came across the machine gun nest. They all greeted me warmly as I slid in, between Smokey and Alton Moor.

"Yo guys."

"Hey Sunny. Coffee?"

I nodded, smiling slightly as the warm cup un-numbed my fingers. I took a sip, and went to pass it back to him, but he waved me off.

"Warm your hands up for a while."

"Thanks."

"So, how's our favourite little lady?" Mo asked me, shivering. I shrugged in reply.

"That bad huh?" he smirked with a chuckle.

"No.. I'm just as bad as everyone else is. How are you guys faring up?"

"The same.."

"Thought so.. well, remember to keep moving. Means the Germans can't get you, and you'll stay warm."

The guys chuckled, and I patted them on the legs before I got out. I came across Gene, as I wandered further down the line. He was talking to Earl 'One Lung' McLung and Joe Toye.

"Ask him to dance Doc." One Lung told Gene, as he sat between them patiently waiting.

"Gene, what are you doing out here?"

The three of them whirled around to look at me as I approached.

"Well, I came to check on the men and Gordon told me to check up on Toye." I nodded, before looking at Joe.

"What's he done now?"

"Gordon said he was missing something.." he replied, eyeing Joe up.

"Well it's not his brain, we established he didn't have one in Toccoa when he fell in that ditch everyone told him to watch out for."

"Yeah yeah, shut up Sunny.. and you watch the God Damn line McLung." Joe growled, before turning around and sticking his feet in the air. They were wrapped in two towels instead of boots. Gene's eyebrows shot up into his dark hair under his helmet.

"Where are yo' boots?"

"In Washington, up General Taylor's ass."

_'Good one Joe' _I thought to myself as I chuckled behind Gene, who turned and gave me his best 'I'm not impressed so don't encourage them' look.

"Seriously Joe, what happened to them?" I asked, hopping up and down, trying (and failing) to keep warm.

"Took 'em off to dry my socks and they got blown to shit."

"Ah.. well, there's your problem Gene." He looked at me once more, staring at me intently, "And now I'm leaving. G'night boys."

I began trudging back to my fox hole, alone, cold, and in the pitch dark. The Bois Jacques were fucking creepy at night, I'll tell you that for nothing. You couldn't hear anything, unless you passed a fox hole and stopped to listen. There was no sound, save for those walking around checking on the men, which was me and Gene. The occasional flare went up, and when it did, we just jumped in a fox hole, like I did that night.

* * *

"Ow! God DAMN!" hissed a very angry, ginger haired shrimp from South Philly.

"Sorry Shrimpo." I hissed back, elbowing him on purpose.

"You're a pain in my ass, you know that!"

"Oh, was that what that was?"

We were still arguing when the first shell came down.

"Holy mother of God!" Babe yelled over the noise of the explosions.

"What is she gonna do?!" His new friend, John. T. Julian yelled back at him.

"Shut your mouth you idiot!" Babe screamed at his friend.

I gave them an elbow to the ribs each, seeing as I was in the middle. That shut them up. Well either that or I'd gone deaf.


	14. Teenagernapped

**Teenagernapped  
**

* * *

**Okay readers, I feel like I haven't said this for a while, so Imma say it now. I don't own Band of Brothers because that right belongs to Steven Speilberg and Tom Hanks. Of course I don't want to offend any veterans, and this is solely based on the TV series. This is just fanfiction, I adore the real veterans.**

**This little bit doesn't apply to anyone other than Miss Becca... ahem.. Naughty naughty Becca! (Shakes head) Underage drinking is no good! You should listen to Mama Watson (that's me btw)  
**

**R&R please guys!  
**

* * *

"Why do you call me that?" Shrimpo asked, as the three of us sat in the fox hole, trying to keep our heart beats under control. The shelling had stopped, but I wasn't going to risk running out and back to my own hole, when we all knew that the Germans were just trying to draw us out of our cover. I looked Babe up and down quickly, before I looked back out across the line.

"Because that's what you look like."

"How do I look like a fuckin' shrimp."

"Because you're scrawny and pink."

Jules and Shrimpo looked at each other, like I was an alien, before they looked back at me.

"What are you two staring at, watch the line."

"That poor replacement." I giggled the next day, to Gene and Spina.

"What replacement?" Gene asked, eating his frozen food that looked a little like cat sick. I'm sorry, but it did.

"That Julian. You know, the one in Babe's fox hole."

The two medics nodded, when suddenly, a wild Lieutenant Dike appeared!

"What's this? 3 medics in one hole?"

"Actually sir, I don't live in this one." I told him, raising my hand a little, like I was in class again. Gene and Spina coughed a little, but Dike the dick ignored me.

"What's going to happen if you two get hit?" he asked, more annoyed.

"Well, I'm here sir."

Again the Great Harry Houdini ignore me, so I just shrugged, letting Lip lead him away.

"I must have forgotten to take off my fucking invisibility cloak off again." Out of the corner, I could see Gene's mouth twist into a small smile and Spina sat chuckling his little head off.

"Spina, I need you to go and get supplies. Take Heffron with you, get yourselves a hot meal. I need bandages, mawphine, whatever you can beg, you beg, got that? And for God's sake, get me some damn sizzuhs!" he hissed the last part, just as Speen was climbing out of the fox hole.

"Smell ya later Speen."

"Same to you Sunny."

* * *

Later that day, while Hoobs and I were walking back to the fox hole we shared with George, Hashey and Perco, we came across Gene, sitting a little way from Speen, Malark, Babe, Jules and Skip. The group were laughing like they'd had 20 Tequila shots each, while Gene just looked on and grinned at them.

"What's so funny Shrimpo?" I teased, stopping by the fox hole.

"Babe nearly got shot in the ass by a Kraut." Skip snorted, as the group burst out into raucous laughter.

"You missed an opportunity there." Chuckled Hoobs.

"Yeah, getting shot in the ass is something of a tradition." Malark grinned at the other red head.

"Great, something to look forward to for Christmas." Babe muttered, looking at his feet.

"So, how exactly did you almost get shot in the ass?" I teased him again, crouching in the space next to Jules and Speen.

"He fell in a Kraut fox hole, then the Kraut started shouting for Hinkle and we just took off." Speen howled. I looked at Babe, and he stared at me like he'd kill me if I laughed. I bit my lip and looked away, so I wouldn't laugh.

"C'mon Beau, we'd better get going, fox hole Norman wanted to see you, remember?" Hoobs said, trying not laugh at the poor red headed shrimp.

"Good luck with that. Ass holes probably in fucking Paris."

"Or with Hinkle." Jules snorted, earning him a slap around the back of the head from Babe.

"That guys better at vanishing than Harry fucking Houdini." I grumbled, letting Hoobs help me up.

"You remembered to take your invisibility cloak off this time." Gene asked from not too far away. The whole group turned to look at him, and I could feel the corners of my lips curl up.

"Eugene Roe, was that a joke?"

"I guess it was." he replied with a smile and a shrug. I giggled, but that soon turned into a coughing fit. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just have to swallow my lungs..."

* * *

I used to love the snow. I'd stay out in it for ages when I was little, making huge snow families (I mean height wise, they're not extended families of snowmen, that would be silly.. like dugongs living in trees) and riding on my little sledge. When I'd come in, almost frozen, my mother would make me hot chocolate, with whipped cream piled on top of marshmallows that were melting and becoming gooey because of the heat from the drink, and then she'd sprinkle chocolate dust on top of that. The thought of it made me drool.

"Beau, what are you drooling at?"

"Awha?" I asked, snapping back to reality. I wiped the corner of my mouth; I had been drooling.

"You were just staring off into space... and drooling.."

"Oh... I was thinking about my mum's hot chocolate."

"Ohh.. I see.."

"She used to pile all sorts on it.. marshmallows, whipped cream.. chocolate sprinkles.."

Hoobs and I looked at each other and sighed. Being stuck in a frozen fox hole, in the middle of Belgium or Luxembourg or where ever the hell we were, was no fun. Especially since we didn't have the proper equipment (I don't think we had any equipment), we were near constantly shelled and we didn't have any hot chocolate.

* * *

"You're more concerned about not having hot chocolate, than being shelled by Krauts?" Skip once asked in disbelief. Apparently I needed to sort my priorities out.

* * *

"I do have them sorted out." I grumbled to Frank and George, as I sulked in the fox hole.

"Yeah? What are they?"

"Not dying, not letting you lot die and getting some hot chocolate."

"Ask a stupid question..." George sighed, trying to get comfy as his helmet slid over his eyes. I rolled my eyes, and got up out of the hole, just as Gene was coming over. I watched in surprise, as the usually quiet medic upended Frank's musset bag, and took his scissors, complaining about all the tablets he had in his bag. I sniggered behind my hand, trying to suppress my tears of laughter, as the no nonsense medic thanked the pissed Italian, and proceeded to walk off like nothing had happened.

* * *

I was still laughing when some one grabbed me from behind. I knew it wasn't one of the guys playing a trick on me, since I'd gone to the loo and was well away from their fox holes. I was struck with horror, as I realised I must have stumbled on to the German lines.

_'God help me' _ I silently prayed, as my kidnapper dragged me off, kicking and screaming as loud as I could.

* * *

"_You're a fucking idiot sometimes." I remembered Bill scolding me while I was still in the hospital._

"_It's not my fault I got teenagernapped when I went to the loo is it?" I protested vehemently, as Joe, Bill and Charlie looked at me with their arms crossed over their chests. "Well it's not!"_


	15. Hinkle Vinkle Little Star

**Hinkle Vinkle Little Star, I Don't Know Where We Are.**

* * *

****Ahh, I hope you'll all appreciate the little rhyme I've done further down in the chapter, took me ages to think of it (I'm afraid I'm not poetically inclined) Anywhoodles (I love that word :) ) Please review, it means a lot, even if it's just a few words, and if you have, many thanks :)

Allie

* * *

I'd got no idea where she was, or how she was. All I knew, was that there'd been a scream, and Beau hadn't come back. She could have been killed, and I began to panic.

"Hey, Hoob, calm down, we'll find her." Perco tried to calm me down in the morning.

"Calm down? How can I calm down! She's missing! With all the shit that's flying round here, I'll be surprised if she's alive!" I more or less yelled at my friends.

I didn't know if they understood how I felt, but I was glad they weren't so mad at me for shouting. I'd been sat, head in hands for over an hour, worrying, when I felt the log I was sat on, dip with the weight of more people. Raising my head, I found it was Malark, Shifty and Hashey.

"We know you're worrying about her, but you know that won't bring her back." Shifty said, to my far right.

"Yeah, and like Bill said, 'if there ain't no body, there ain't no one fuckin' dead'." Hashey said to me, putting his hand on my shoulder.

I chuckled, despite myself, shaking my head. It reminded me, though, of how badly I'd treated her before I'd gone looking for Bull. I'd never stop feeling guilty for that, and I wanted to make it up to her any way I could, and not looking for her, wasn't exactly a great idea.

* * *

"You heard anything about Molly-Anne?" I heard Nixon ask Winters later on, as I walked past. I saw Winters shake his head. I sighed, trying to think positive. I carried on walking to link up with the guys who were going on a patrol.

I got there just in time to hear George complaining about Peacock.

"Ass hole couldn't find a snow ball in a blizzard." he muttered, as Bull helped him on with his radio.

"Hey Hoob.. you heard anything of her yet?" Johnny asked when I got closer to the group. I simply shook my head.

"No? Well I'm sure she'll turn up, try not to worry about it.." he advised, patting my shoulder.

* * *

We wandered through the snow laden forest for what seemed like hours. Everything looked the same, and we almost lost half the patrol because of that. That and Peacock was useless. The damn guy couldn't read a map, use a fucking compass... I was surprised if we even got to where we were supposed to be going.

I could hear in my head, the little rhyme George and Beau had made up one patrol.

_"Twinkle, twinkle, little star, I don't know where we are. Peacock's got us lost again, are there nine or are there 10? Is it left or is it right, Hashey's had a nasty fright. Twinkle, twinkle little star, I think I know where we are."_

* * *

Taking up our positions as quietly as we could, we waited until Johnny sent Julian over to check something out. Before we knew it, Johnny was screaming that Julian was down, and there was a hail of machine gun fire coming our way.

"I can get to him sarge! Just lemme try!" I could hear Babe yell over the deafening noise of gun fire. Before he could move to him though, the Krauts started yelling and firing in a different direction.

"What the hell's going on over there?!" George screamed at the top of his lungs.

"How the fuck should I know?!" I yelled back.

I could see that Babe didn't waste his time getting to Julian. He used the distraction well, pulling him to safety, before someone else appeared by his side, and the enemy began firing at us again.

"Where the fuck have you been?!" Johnny yelled at the new person.

"Hono-fucking-lulu!" the voice screamed back at him.

"Hoobler's been looking all over for you!"

"He's always looking for me! It's not my fault I got teenagernapped is it?!"

"Shut up and lets go!"

* * *

"You're sure you're okay?"

"For the millionth time, babe, I'm cool. Chill out." Beau chuckled, as the company sat around freezing their asses off trying to eat Joe Domingus' rancid ass beans.

"You're cool? I thought you would have been freezing by now.." George joked earning him a snowball to the shoulder.

"Nice shot."

"Thank you." she grinned, huddling closer into my chest. "I feel.. like a pinguin."

"A what?"

"A pinguin."

"What's a pinguin?"

"Those black and white birds that waddle around and get eaten by Killer Whales."

"You mean penguins?"

"That's what I said, pinguin."

I shook my head, the snow that had settled on my helmet dropping off.

"I've said this many times before.. you're really strange Beau."

"I'm strange to you, but where I come from, this shit, is normal." she informed me, sticking her tongue out when she'd done. I stuck my tongue out back and in the end, she flipped me off.

"Is that really how you treat the person who loves you... and someone who out ranks you?"

"Ooohhhh! Get you, pulling rank on me!" she teased, laughing into my coat.

"You're not doing my confidence any favours."

"What are you talking about? You've got me stuck to you, you don't need me to say anything really.."

"Oh, how could I forget?"

* * *

Later that night, George and I waited up for Beau and Perco to come back from her rounds of the fox holes. When they did came back they were silent.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

No reply. She just sat there looking out at nothing, knees pulled up to her chin, trying to keep warm.

"Hey, Sunshine! What's the matter?" George tried.

Still no reply.

"She's upset. No one told her about Gordon..."

George and I looked at each other, before we looked back at Beau.

"I could have helped.."

"You weren't here baby.."

"You could have told me." she snapped, coldly, narrowing her eyes.

I sighed, defeated. Smokey was a good friend to Beau, especially when I wasn't. To find out he'd gone and not been able to do anything about it, must have made her really mad at us for not telling her, and upset for him.

"C'mon." George said, getting up and out of the fox hole. She looked at him curiously, but followed all the same.

"Where are we going?"

"To see Smokey."

* * *

When George said they were going to see Smokey, I didn't expect them to fetch him back. I didn't expect her to fetch Roe's girl back with her either...

"Guys, this is Renee. Renee, this is George, Frank and Donald."

"Beau..."

"Yes?"

"Where did she come from?"

"Bastogne.."

Perco and I rolled our eyes, "Sweetie, she's a nurse not a puppy, no offence ma'am, you can't just take her with you."

"Actually.. she saved my life... the aid station.. eet was bombed."

We looked at the nurse, Renee and then we looked at Beau, who just shrugged.

"Gene went to the town with Welsh just before you came back."

"I know, but Welshy said the wound was a little too close for comfort for me to be touching.. so I just came back."

* * *

A couple of days later, we were moving further down the line and we were all gathered around Buck and Malark. Malark was knelt on the ground, while Buck used him as a table to show us the map.

As he explained where we were going , he jabbed Malark's head with his large fingers.

"Ow!" the red head moaned from the floor. "Hey, watch it!"

"Shut up complaining Malark or I'll nail it to your head."

We sniggered, as Malark turned to glare at us, only to be further put down by Bill.

"So you should, it's made outta wood."

"Ass holes." we heard Malark grumbled under his breath.

"You should be glad he can't talk. He asks stupid questions."

We all turned to look at who was talking and to be honest, we shouldn't have been surprised that it was Beau. Someone snickered next to her and another person tried to say something, only it came out like someone gargling gravel.

"Shut up Shrimpo."

Babe glared at her, as they came into view.

"But then I don't have anyone to talk to." Julian told her.

"Oh... well.. I don't think there's anything I can do, and I don't think trying to shove my hands down Shrimpo's throat would make him feel any better."

Babe slapped her upside the head.

"Woman beater!"

"You're so immature!" Babe croaked back.

"Hey! Stop bullying Sunny! Hoob'll kick your ass!" Skip called over from our group.

The trio stopped and looked over at us. Beau cocked her head to the side, when she saw Malark knelt on the floor with the map on his head. She shook her head at us.

"Hoobs doesn't need to kick his ass... I can just torment him."

At this point, Babe had started to walk away.

"Hey Shrimpo, where you going?" she called to him. He didn't stop or turn around, he just carried on walking.

"He can't talk, idiot..."

"Oh yeah...sooo.. what, is he deaf too?"

There was a few minutes of silence between the two, and us group of guys, as we watched Beau and Julian watch Babe walk away.

"Hey, Babe, you going to see Hinkle?" Julian shouted to him suddenly. Beau burst into hysterical laughter, and she was soon followed by Julian. Babe stopped and turned to the two clowns, a sort of slack smile on his face.

"What did you just say?" he croaked.

"Nothing." Beau called back in a sing song voice. Babe looked over at us as if to say 'seriously?'. We just shrugged at him. Babe looked at us all once more, this time with a look that said 'I'll get you all for this', before he walked off.

"Aww c'mon Edward, don't be such a bore!"

"Sunny, only the nuns call him fuckin' Edward." the two continued to tease, as they chased after him.


	16. Wait and See

**Wait and See**

****sorry this is only short, but I shall be writing another one after this and putting the last touches to the most heartbreaking part of Band of Brothers, but you'll just have to see what happens. Until then, read&review please!

* * *

We all huddled around or near where Joe Domingus had been cooking. It was Christmas day, and here we were, in the middle of a fucking forest, in the middle of fucking winter, in the middle of a fucking war. And what was on the menu for Christmas dinner? Rancid. Ass. Beans.

"When I get out of here, I am **never** eating beans again. Ever." I told the guys, following Joege and Popeye from the line.

"At least it's edible." Shifty said, coming up along side me.

"You sure about that?"

"Just be thankful for what you have Sunny." he smiled wisely. I sighed with a smile of my own.

"Fine, fine. Whatever you say Shift."

* * *

"Now, Alley over here, has been hit twice. Landed on broken glass in Normandy, and got hit by a potato masher in Holland." I heard Skip say, as he walked along, followed by a very green private.

"George Luz... has never been hit. You're one lucky bastard." Skip told him, patting George on the shoulder.

Skip, Pink and the private walked closer to our group, as Skip told him all the wounds people had gotten during their run in Easy.

"Sergeant Randelman over there, got a piece of tank in his shoulder in Holland."

The private seemed wide eyed at everything and everyone. It made me smile to think Heff and the others used to be just like that. Unfortunately for me, Skippy boy saw my little smile and came marching over to our little group.

"Now, you see that scrawny little guy over there? That Joe Liebgott, he got hit in the neck. The little lady in the middle-"

"Lady?" the replacement asked, even more wide eyed than before.

"Yeah, Sunny is a girl. You wanna hear this or not kid?"

He nodded, so Skip carried on.

"Well, Sunny got hit in the face in Carentan, when a chunk of building nearly took out her eye. For a scar, it's pretty nice."

"Why thank you Warren." I smiled, nodding my head.

"Not a problem. Someone's gotta compliment you while they have the chance, huh?.. say.. where is Hoob?"

I looked around and not seeing him, I leaned back on the log we were sat on to see if I could see him. I didn't think it through, like a lot of things, and I felt myself falling backwards. Thankfully, Joege was a secret ninja, and his arm shot out, grabbing the front of my coat and dragging my back up to sitting position.

"Joe, that's the only time grabbing my chest will be acceptable... But Skip, to answer your question, I haven't got a clue where he is."

"Now that's a surprise." He smirked. I flipped him off, before he carried on his 'tour', "Anyway, the other skinny little guy sat next to her? That's Popeye. He got hit in his skinny ass in Normandy."

"Where as Buck got shot in his rather large butt back in Holland." Pink added, to which Buck turned around and pointed to where the bullet had hit him. I snorted, remembering Lips words.

"1 bullet 4 holes. Rather impressive Buck."

"Ahh shut yer trap Mrs Hoobler." he smirked.

I blushed a violent scarlet, digging my face into my coat and scarf as they guys laughed.

"You're a bunch of asses!" I whined, walking off towards Lip and Bill.

"Sergeant Lipton over there, had a very lucky escape. He got hit in Carentan, one chunk took out his face, the other nearly took out his nuts."

"How are those nuts Lip?" Bill asked, spooning his dinner into his mouth. I chuckled, taking my place next to Lip.

"They're fine Bill, just fine."

* * *

"Hey Hoob, where you been?" Pink called, as they saw him saunter over.

"Yeah, we asked your wife, but she didn't know where you were."

"Fuck off Skip!" I growled, my voice echoing around the empty forest, followed swiftly by a sneeze. "Jesus... Bill, do me a favour and see if my eyeballs are still in my head."

Bless good old Bill. He really did make the effort to check if my eyes were still in my face.

"You're good to go Sunny."

I smiled, taking my helmet off and shaking my fringe in front of my eyes. Whatever the boys said about my scar, I didn't agree with. It was ugly. The only thing I could do, was to hide it, seeing as it would never go away.

"If you don't stop trying to hide that thing, I'm gonna cut your damn fringe off." Bill threatened good naturedly. I looked away, to Dick, trying to ignore him.

"Look.. I know you don't like it and I know you don't want to hear what us boys think about it, but the thing is, that is something you'll never get away from. Now you can either be proud of how you got it, or you can try and hide it in shame."

* * *

I thought about Bill's words all night. Did I really want to be ashamed of something that happened in one of the most famous events in history? No, the truth was, I didn't, but I felt ugly none the less. If I couldn't get rid of it, and Bill wouldn't let me hide it, I decided there was no point in trying to deny that I had it. I plaited my fringe to my head, so it was like a head band made out of hair. Bill should be satisfied now, I thought.

"Beau, I haven't seen you all day, you been avoiding me?" Hoobs asked me, while I was sat alone with him in the fox hole. I looked up at him, seeing that his face had hurt all over it. He gave me a look that could give a puppy a run for it's money, if puppies had money.

"No, of course not... well... not on purpose... it was just something Skip said.. made me think a little."

"What did it make you think about?" he pressed, edging further and further into my personal space. I didn't mind, he was warm.

"Just what's going to happen next... I mean.. where I'm going to go, what will I do.. you and me..."

"Well.. you could stay with me and my family, if you wanted.. You could start your own florist."

I smiled, resting my tired body on his chest, "Mmm, that sounds like a plan.. I'm not living with your family forever though.. I'll move out eventually."

"Well.. we'll get a house."

"Together?"

"Yes. Hence the term 'we'."

I rolled my eyes at him, not caring if he saw.

"Then what? We'd be married?"

"Well..yeah.."

"And there's going to be children."

"I hope so.."

I nodded in thought. I wasn't sure I was ready to start a family. I was only young after all. I couldn't bare the thought of having a family so young, but I knew Hoobs would want to get married as soon as we could. I just wasn't sure if it was a good idea and I definitely wasn't sure how I could break it to him.

"Well.. we'll see what happens."


	17. Time Enough To Make Up Your Mind

**Time Enough To Make Up Your Mind**

****Ahh, I'm sorry this is another short chapter, but I couldn't think of anything to write, and I thought I'd write a little tender moment between Buck and Beau, because there's an awful lot of people declaring their love for one another in this story and just because I can. R&R please!

* * *

"You're not sure about it, are you?"

"What? What are you talking about Buck?"

The two of us were sat in his fox hole, quietly staring up at the stars in the dark black sky. I'd not spent much time with Buck since he came back, but he was a little different. He was always staring off into space, most of the days he was more serious than a heart attack... I still couldn't believe he'd wanted them to leave him, back in Holland. Malark wouldn't have any of it. Him and Buck are as thick as thieves, there was no way he would leave him. I missed the old Buck, he knew how to laugh and joke. It was almost as if this one was a.. a placebo. You know, not the real thing, doesn't do anything. Well, he was still combat minded, but he wasn't really alive. I hated to say it, but he was almost dead inside. His eyes had lost their sparkle, their flame. We'd try anything to rekindle it.

"You and Hoobs.. you.. you're not-not sure about it, are-are you?" He shivered uncontrollably, giving me a sideways look.

"Of c-course I'm sure about us... wha-what makes you thi-think that?"

"It's j-just y-you seem off him l-lately."

"B-Buck, I l-love him!"

"I know-know that... y-you just don't seem t-to know what y-you want.."

"Ha-has h-he said so-something to you?"

"Mm-maybe.."

"Urgh!" I groaned, digging my face into my jacket and scarf. Buck turned his head to look at me. "What?"

"Nothing." he lied, looking back at the stars.

"Lair. T-tell me."

"Wha-what are y-you going to do, whe-when you get ho-home?"

"He wa-wants to get m-m-married."

"D-do you?"

"I..." I didn't finish my sentence. I think my silence had said it all. I wasn't sure about anything and I was having a lot of pressure on me from Hoobs, whether he knew he was doing it or not. He wanted to get married, to have kids, and lots of them. He always loved kids and it was more than obvious to everyone that he wanted a family. He talked about having one all them time, in Toccoa, in the fox holes, but it was a little too much for me. I wasn't old enough, I felt, to have children.

"You don't think you're old enough?"

"I'm not.. not ready... Buck, don't get me wrong, I've a-always had this l-little picture of a p-perfect family, in a n-nice little house and a b-big garden, but.. i-it's too soon. I-I love him to death... I.. I;m worried t-that i-if I say n-no.. we.. we.."

"T-the war is-isn't over y-yet... y-you'll have t-time to make your m-mind up."


	18. War Horse

**War Horse.**

****I decided to give the horse the German officer had it's own little starring role, because I felt sorry for it, having to wander around in the cold, not knowing where to go. The other horse, is the one from Zelda, because I'm honestly brain dead at the moment and I can't think, and it's the only thing i could think of. I don't own it, but if i did, that would be awesome, because Epona is an awesome horse... For a game character.. Enjoy.

**A little warning, I don't think I'll be writing any more after this story is done, but we shall see how I feel. Blegh.**

* * *

Hashey, Christensen, Hoobs and me, were huddled behind a tree, on a patrol as we cleared the Bois Jacques, as a German officer came galloping down the road on a beautiful black horse. Hoobs looked at the 3 of us, before he moved out into the path of the on coming officer. He shouted for him to halt, but the German thought he had a better chance of escape, and took off in the direction he came.

Hoobs fired, missing twice, but the 3rd hit him right in the top of his head. He slipped stiffly from the saddle, hitting the frozen, snow covered ground head first. The horse whinnied in fear and confusion, panicking when it's rider toppled off, stone cold dead.

Hoobs, Hashey ran over to the dead officer, while Christensen and I hung back, slowly walking up behind them. I watched as Hoobs prodded the officer's arm with the muzzle of his gun. When he didn't move, Hoobs took the opportunity to search him, and seeing that the officer had a luger, he took it. I rolled my eyes, and I saw that the horse had returned, probably to find it's owner.

It was a a deep, deep black colour and it looked nervous, but it was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen. Just because it was war, doesn't mean there still wasn't beauty in the world.

People are monsters, I knew that. Death and destruction was always meant to fall in the shadow of man, but not everything had to suffer that, did they? Horses are calm, they're quiet, they're beautiful animals. They're noble and majestic, they aren't creatures who should be pulled into a global massacre.

I let out a breath I hadn't know I was holding, as the horse came closer to me. Behind me, Hoobs fired off his new toy, which startled the animal, who whinnied in surprise.

"Ssh! It's all right!" I soothed the horse, edging slowly closer to the nervous animal. It snorted, shaking it's dark head, it's mane falling into it's deep chocolate eyes, one's that reminded me of George.

The horse walked closer to me, smelling me before it felt comfortable enough for me to touch it. I slowly and softly dragged my ungloved fingers down it's nose. It had been a while since I'd been near a horse. While I was alive, I had a horse of my own.

* * *

She was a sort of terracotta colour, and her socks started off white, but turned black when they got to her knees. Her mane was white, and so was her tail, her mouth was black, fading out to the same terracotta colour as her body and her face had white marks on it like paint splodges, from her forehead, to her nose. I won a lot of show jumping competitions with her, and my bedroom was full of ribbons and trophies. I'd had her since she was a foal, so I'd grown up with her. To say she was a horse, I missed her quite a bit.

* * *

"Hey, Sunny, whatca doin'?" Christensen asked curiously, coming up next to me, as I stroked the horse.

"I used to have a horse." I said to him, not thinking he'd pay any attention.

"Yeah? Why don't you ride it?"

I rolled my eyes, "Don't be stupid. Someone would probably shoot me like Hoobs did to him."

"So.. what are you going to do with it?"

I shrugged. The poor thing. It seemed hardly fair to leave it wandering around in the freezing cold, all alone, but we couldn't take it with us. A dog, maybe, seeing as Trigger was with Renee at the aid-station, but a horse? That was just being stupid. Maybe there was some where I could take it where it would be all right. Taking hold of the reigns, I clicked my tongue for the horse to follow me. Christensen came with me too, not wanting anything to happen to me.

* * *

We didn't walk for long, because Christensen wanted me to come back. I began to strip the horse, keeping the blanket on it so it would be warm. I pushed it slightly.

"Go on, go." I urged, but it wouldn't go. It just stood staring at me. "Go!"

I slapped it, hard. It reared up, before it galloped off in the fog, and all that was left, was a silhouette in the mist.


	19. Nothing About War Is Peaceful

**Nothing About War Is Peaceful; Dying Is Not Graceful.**

_Nothing about war is peaceful; dying is not graceful.. but maybe in those last seconds, that last breath, that last blink... peace finds you._

_Introduction for a poem called A Soldier's Winter.  
_

* * *

**This is the chapter I know someone has and hasn't been waiting for, I'm sorry Becca. It had to be done, even if I didn't like writing this chapter. I started this chapter when I began writing the Zombie chapter I think it was.. Anywhoodles... Enjoy.  
**

**And seeing as my retirement isn't allowed, there might be a Frank Perconte story cropping up. Ah who am I kidding, there is one coming soon. it's only one chapter, but it's a pretty long one. And there should have been my collaboration story, but I dunno what's going on with it (Becca, this means you missy!)  
**

**You really REALLY need to listen to these songs as you read this, because.. well you just do. The Second song down should be read where the stars are, because it makes it seem more.. i dunno.. real? **

**Track list for this chapter:**

**In The House In A Heartbeat - 28 Days Later Soundtrack  
**

**Regret - Le Portrait de Petit Cossette soundtrack  
**

**Owen Fights Death -Torchwood soundtrack**  
**

**Moby – Natural Blues**

* * *

He was so proud of that fucking Luger. He went from fox hole to fox hole, showing everyone and telling them how he got it. I hated it. It hated it from the moment he found it, but he was so proud of himself, I didn't have the heart to take it away from him. But I didn't keep my feelings about it secret.

"I hate that thing."

"Why?"

"It's bad luck."

"Beau, what are you talking about?" Hoobs asked as we walked to Shifty's fox-hole. He stared at the gun in complete awe.

"I'm half Cajun, we believe in all the bad spirits and shit. You know poltergeists and things like that."

"You do?" he asked, eyeing me.

"Yes I do, and that is bad luck."

He shook his head and said with a chuckle, "Now how could I have bad luck with you around."

"You're flattery will get you no where. Hoobs, I'm sorry, but I hate that thing, and until you get rid of it, there'll be no kisses, cuddles, hugs or anything else remotely romantic."

"You're not serious..."

* * *

Ignoring my sometimes idiotic boyfriend, wasn't hard. I was good at blocking people out, and it seemed like I'd need that talent somewhere in the future. It helped that I was busy helping Shifty dig in too, so I wouldn't really be paying all that attention to him.

* * *

"Down he goes like a sack o'potatoes, right outta the saddle. Outstanding accuracy on my part if I say so myself." Hoobs told Lip and Shifty, as we three dug Shifty's fox hole. He sat on the edge, with Hashey, just looking at the Luger in awe.

"Which you do." I smiled, shaking my head.

"Which I do.. hell Shifty I think maybe I could have given you a run for your money, right?"

"No, no, I'm not a good shot." he replied, stopping a moment to catch his breath. "Now dad, he was an excellent shot, excellent I declare. He could shoot the wings off a fly."

"Shift, you're the best shot in this whole company. You could shoot the wings off a fly too." I told my ridiculously modest best friend. He looked at me for a moment, stabbing the frozen dirt with his shovel, a slight red hue on his face, before he started digging again.

"Hey Lip, that German, what do you think he was doing anyway?" Hoobs asked, looking away from his gun, to Lip, who was still digging.

"Probably on recon. Maybe figured no body would hear a horse."

"Probably just wanted to get the hell out of here." Hashey said, watching me as I took a break from digging. I stuck my tongue out at him, to which he replied in the same way.

"What happened to the horse anyway?" Shifty asked, looking at Hoobs.

"I dunno. Beau took it away, made it run. Probably still running... I hope it's okay." Shifty look at me as I rolled my eyes again.

"You kill a man, no problems, but you're worried about a fucking horse? I think you need a priority check."

"You do too."

"I don't need a priority check, Hoobler." I told him, throwing a lump of frozen dirt his way.

"You dug in?" Lip asked, breathlessly, stopping to look at Hoobs.

"Yeah yeah. Yeah I just thought I'd take a walk, shoot the shit." Hoobs said, standing up with Hashey.

Lip nodded, "Ah, you're a good shot Hoob, just glad you're on our side."

Hoobs looked at me for a moment and for the 3rd time in the space of 5 minutes, I rolled my eyes.

"Fine! Fine!" I grumbled, letting him help me out of the half finished fox hole. "But just this once. I'm serious. Anything happens with that thing, I'll kill you."

"Even if I'm dead?"

"I'd kill you, bury you, dig you up and kill you again."

He chuckled and smirked, letting his lips wrap softly around mine, before he turned and walked away.

"Idiot." I breathed, watching his back disappear. Jumping back into Shifty's fox hole, I picked up where I left off, letting Shifty take a break.

* * *

"Hey Lip? Sunny?"

"Yeah?" we asked, still digging.

"Thanks for the help."

"You got it Shifty." Lip heaved, throwing some dirt over the side.

"Anything for my best buddy." I grinned, patting his leg. Just then, Malark and Buck came walking over to us. They didn't stand far away from us, and Malark came over to throw Shifty some cigs.

"Hey Lip, you got a sec?" Buck asked, scratching his nose, as we carried on digging. Lip said he had and got out of the fox hole, as Shifty started to dig, and handed Malark his shovel.

Lip walked around with Buck while the three of us sat smoking.

"Where's Dike, where is he? Where the hell does he ever go?" Buck grumbled, as he and Lip came back to the fox hole.

"I dunno, but I wish he'd stay the hell there." Malark told him point blank. I snorted, beginning to laugh.

"Be nice if he could take Lieutenant Shames with him too." Shifty added, as I giggled a little more.

"Shut up boys." Lip told them.

"Shutting up Sarge." Malark said, starting to carve away at the earth with the shovel Lip handed to him.

That was when a shot rang out in the cold silence, and everyone who wasn't already in, jumped into Shifty's foxhole.

"What the hell was that?" some one from the next fox hole over called.

"Patrol?" Malark asked. I wondered what I could have been and there wasn't another shot after.

"No, we woulda heard."

"One man, maybe a sniper." Buck wondered, trying to validate the noise.

"That was no rifle."

"Hoobs!" I almost yelled, throwing myself out of the foxhole when I realised what it could be, running as fast as I could to my fallen angel. My heart was racing, as I sped past Hashey, who was on his was to tell the others that Hoobs had shot himself accidentally.

* * *

******"Hoobs!" I threw myself to my knees, beside him, looking for his wound. Perco was already there, trying to calm him down, shouting for Gene or Spina, or any medic. My nimble fingers dashed over his leg, knowing what they would find, but hoping in vain that it wouldn't be true.

"Jesus Christ!" Buck breathed, resting Hoobs' head on his knees, as Gene took over, so I could hold my love.

"I swear I didn't touch it! Baby, I promise you, it was just in my pocket and it went off!" Hoobs panicked. I knew I was loosing him, and I silently prayed that he didn't die, that he could stay with me.

"I know, I believe you, just calm down!"

"I'm sorry Beau! Argh, it hurts like a son of a bitch!" he cried, thrashing his legs and arms. I grabbed his hand, lacing my fingers through it and holding it to my chest.

"It's okay, it's okay, just calm down, please Hoobs!"

"What did it think it was a German leg?" Gene asked, trying to calm his nerves. But he was fading. I knew he'd severed his artery. I knew he was dying. They tried to keep him warm, told him not to look, told me not to look. But I knew. This was it.

"Hey Beau?"

"Yeah Hoobs?" I asked, as he grabbed my hand as tight as he could, as they guys worried over his leg. Gene worked as fast as he could to save him.

"I'm sorry I lied.."

"Lied about what?"

"I said.. I told you I'd tell you I love you, every day for the rest of our lives... guess that isn't going to happen.." he smiled sadly, the tears in his eyes falling down his round, red cheeks.

"Hoobs! Don't say that, please don't say that!" I begged, beginning to sob.

"I'm sorry Beau.."

"I swear I will kill you if you die! After all we've gone through, Donald fucking Duck-"

"I love you Beau... there's something I want you to have.. in my pocket. Take it now, I want to know you actually took it, even if I'm not going to know if you'll read it." he heaved, trying to stay alive for just a little while longer. I took a letter out of his pocket, keeping hold of one of his hands, before I kissed him.

"There'll be no one else, ever." I whispered against his lips. He smiled, and his grip loosened. As I let out a sob, Buck told Gene to stop working. He was gone.

* * *

"Sunny I..." Gene looked at me, with pure heartbreak written all over his face. I bit my bottom lip, to stop it trembling.

"If I could bring him back.." he tried again, stopping because of the lump in his throat. I shook my head, trying not to cry, as I stroked my beloveds face.

"It's not your fault...you tried..." I couldn't bring myself to look at them, any of them. I felt Lip move next to me, and Perco came to my side too. They were all best friends. And I was his Beau, his gal, his sweetheart, and I loved him.

"You promised.. you promised.." I mumbled into Hoobs' non moving chest, as I held him for the very last time.

I looked over to Buck, as they all stood, and the flood gates opened. He pulled me roughly up and into his chest as I sobbed. He rubbed soothing circles on my back, and led me away from Hoobs' body, no matter how strongly I protested and how much I cried.

"No! Buck, I can't leave him one his own!"

"You have to kiddo! He's.. he's gone.."

"It's not fair! Why could I help Julian and not him!?"

"I don't know Sunny, but you gotta come with me now." he told me calmly, holing my waist in his vice like grip. I looked at him, biting my lip. I leaned to look past him, as they carefully placed a blanket over his handsome face. Part of me didn't want them to do it, because it felt too real to me that I'd lost him, but some of me was glad. Glad that I didn't have to see the haunted look on his face, glad that I wouldn't be able to look at what had been.

* * *

Buck took me to Joe and Alley's foxhole, and I just sat there in silence, heart ripped out and crushed under the foot of death.

And then I remembered his letter in my left breast pocket. I silently left the fox hole, much to Alley and Joege's dismay and distress. I knew they wanted to keep an eye on me, as did everyone I went past before I found a quiet place to read the letter. I wanted to be on my own. I thought, if I was on my own, I could have the last little piece of him, like I could hang on to him for a little longer than the rest of them. My gloved hands shook with nerves and cold, as I held the envelope tightly in my hands. It was as if I was trying to preserve him, like if I didn't open the letter, then he wouldn't really be dead, the reality of it all couldn't touch me, if I didn't read the spider like scribbles on the paper inside the envelope. I had to read it. I had to read it for him. He wanted me to read it, he said so before he died, and what would that make me, if I didn't make his dying wish come true.

I thought about him, laying on a table, covered with a crude white sheet or blanket, or worse. He could have been piled up outside the church. I bit my tongue. I shouldn't think like that, it would only hurt more.

Shaking with trepidation, I finally opened the letter.

* * *

_Beau, my beautiful Beau,_

_if you're reading this, I'm either dead, or missing, or in a coma. George told me to put the last two down, 'to keep my options open'._

_But no.. I don't think you'd get it if I went missing, or was in a coma, so I've most likely died. _

_I want to tell you so many things, but I don't think I could write them all down. But I can write some down._

_First of all, I love you. We were meant to be, we were always meant to be. Its the reason why we kept coming back to each other. Well either that, or we're pretty stupid. I'm sorry Beau, I just don't want you to cry when you read this. I don't want you to ever cry, especially over me. You're my soul mate Beau, no matter how stupid or cheesey it sounds, you're my soul mate. You are my other half of thin, white, ripped paper. See, I remembered from England._

_Secondly, don't stop living. Live for the both of us. I know you won't, you've told me so yourself, but I want you to live, and have all the children you said you wanted. They may not be mine, but they'll be yours, right, so they'll still be part of your dream, to have a family. Just make sure your husbands a paratrooper._

_Thirdly. Please, please forgive me. I never meant to leave you Beau, I never ever would do that. If I could have, I would have taken you so far away from here, and we'd be living in our little home, with all the kids we could manage, and your garden, with our unusual pets, and we'd grow old together. But I can't change what's happened._

_The last thing is something I would have asked you when we got to go home, after all the killing ended, and we kicked Hitler's ass. Guess seeing as I'm dead, it hasn't really worked out the way I planned it.._

_I wanted you to marry me. Soul mates belong together, right? And, even if I died, it doesn't mean you can't have the ring. So, there it is. Now you gotta promise me, you'll never take that thing off. I mean it, or there going to be some seriously annoying poltergeist shit happening to you._

_I'll love you forever Beau, and I know, that I won't be there to hear you say yes (or no if you don't want to), but will you marry me?_

_Like I said, there's the ring. I bought it in Eindhoven. It's real and everything, silver and yellow, your favourite colours._

_I love you Beau. I love you for ever and always. _

* * *

Gene found me, rocking back and forth, sobbing into my letter 3 hours later. If it had been anything else, he would have kicked my skinny little ass, I'd been gone for hours and no one had a clue where I was. My hands were freezing, but my gloves were full of snow, since I'd taken them off to put on the ring, and I hadn't put them back on.

The medic didn't say anything. He was just quiet, as usual, but he held me close.

"I'm sorry Molly-Anne.. I there was anything I could have done, I would have done it."

* * *

For a few more hours, he sat patiently with me as I sobbed continuously into my ice cold hands, but they left as someone else came. Like with Gene, I didn't acknowledge them.

"I told you not to cry for me."


	20. Let It Be Said

**Let It Be Said.**

****I like to think that Roe from BoB would believe in the supernatural. It's not that weird if you ask me.. you probably don't, but well believe it or not, scary shit happens. I've a 100+ stories I could tell you from personal experience. Also! I have no idea what Hoob's dad was like, I'm making this shit up as I go... It's not even a joke, it's whatever I think of, that sounds decent.

Anyway, thanks to **Becca **and the guest **Mein Teil** for reviewing, I completely agree with you, that song is addicting. Becca.. sorry I made you cry.

* * *

Let it be said, that death is not poetic. It's not graceful, it's gory. Death is brutal. It swallows up everything you love, you memories in a matter of seconds. Death can take a while. Sometimes it's slow and painful. Sometimes it's quick and painful. How ever long it takes doesn't matter. It's always painful. It burns you, like fire raging through a house. It terrifies you, even if you say you're not afraid of it. You think you're not afraid, but you are. Deep down.

Not knowing what's going to happen to you next, not knowing what will happen to the ones you love after your gone. It petrifies you, you can't deny that. You can't lie about it. Anyone who says they don't care, are fucking liars.

No one wants to admit they're afraid of the unknown. They don't want to, but they have to, like me.

For the rest of my existence, I will freely admit, that I fear what's behind the closed doors. I'll also admit, that I listen every damn word my wife says, because generally, she's right. People might say I'm under her thumb, I'd say I was under her protection.

* * *

She's not stupid, my wife. She knows things others wouldn't. I think she knew what was going to happen when I first picked up that Luger.

I knew she wanted to be mad. It was understandable. She told me to do something. I didn't. It got me killed.

It was strange though. I was more than terrified, but it was a strange experience.

* * *

I woke up, but it wasn't really waking up. I had no body, because I could clearly see it laying on a table, in an old basement. Doc Roe wasn't stood far away from it. He was talking to another doctor, telling him why I had two different tags.

"_I still want you to have this you know."_ my words echoed in my head as I gave Beau my other tag again. Oh God. Beau. I'd really fucked up.

"You really fucked up this time, son." a voice boomed behind me. Standing there, as if he were alive, was my dad.

"Wha-what are you doing here?" I asked. I was stunned.

"Same thing as you Donald. Being dead."

"No shit.."

My father stared at me for a while, then suddenly turned to look at Doc. As it turns out, Doc was looking our way, as if the guy could see us.

"Looks like someone's noticed us." my dad said, crossing his arms, eyeing Doc closely. The other medic left, shaking his head, annoyed that I'd only got 1 of my tags. He'd have to make do with just the one.

"Well boy, you going to say something to us or not?" the older man asked Easy's medic, as he paced around my cold, dead body. Gene looked at my body, resting his hand on my wound. The one that had ended my life. The one I had inflicted on myself, by accident. The stupid fucking wound that cost me Beau.

"I don't think there's anything to say." he drawled.

"Doc, how come you can see us, but that other guy couldn't?"

"Well.. I'm either going stir crazy, or it's what my family has passed on through generations."

"What did they pass?"

"Boy, I already knew you were an idiot, but this is getting stupid." my old man groaned, shaking his head.

"The ability to see the dead, Hoobler." Gene said simply.

I breathed out, even though I had no real lungs. I couldn't feel anything. I felt paralysed, but I could move. I felt numb. That was the worst feeling I could ever feel. Numb. You can't feel a heartbeat, because you don't have one. Can't feel warmth or cold. I just longed to live. I tried to explain to her once. She wouldn't let me finish. Instead she locked herself in the bathroom of our home, sobbing for half the night. We never talked about this again. It doesn't matter how many years goes by, it still happened, and it still hurt.

* * *

"I don't want to die."

"It's a little late don't you think?" My old man was still the same.

"Look! Just because you fucked up, doesn't mean I have to fuck up the same way. Doc, isn't there anything I can do?"

"Well.. you're still here.. maybe yo have some unfinished business?"

"Fucking Christ Doc, of course I have! You think I'd leave her alone?"

"No, I don't believe yo would.. well not on a purpose.. but yo died.."

"There must be some thing..."

Gene didn't say anything. He just sighed and looked away, at my physical body. He moved over to it, under the watchful gaze of me and my father. He ripped my pants, just where he had cut them before, only to find nothing. There was no wound, just a small scar and some dried blood. The medic smirked.

"You know Hoob.. I don't think I have to do anything... I think you've already been taken care of."

* * *

And suddenly, I began to tingle. At first it started in my finger tips, but it spread, until my whole body felt like it was buzzing. I felt the warmth, the cold, and best of all, I could feel my heart beat. She'd come through for me once again, even if she didn't know it.

"Son. I wanna say something to you, before you go." I turned to the voice of my father, as everything started to become fuzzy around the edges. Things were slowly turning white, disappearing from my view.

"I'm proud of you boy. Never been so proud of you in my life. You give your mother my love and you look after that girly of yours."

* * *

I don't think I need to say how shocked people were when they saw me get out of the Jeep a few hours later with Gene. Perco practically fell down. I've never seen Lip so scared before, and I could just about say the same for Buck.

"H-Hoob?" Lip stuttered, looking me up and down like he'd seen a ghost. Well.. basically he had.

"Yeah.. hey Sarge.."

Lip took me to see Winters. Nixon dropped his flask in shock. I explained to them what had happened and they said don't mention it to anyone else. Some of the guys knew, some didn't. Winters told me to say it was exaggerated, if people said they'd been told I died. I just nodded. Gene had gone to find Beau. Apparently she was mortified; inconsolable. I don't think anyone could really describe to me how she felt. I mean, what would you do, if the love of your life dies in your arms?

They let me go, after a while, and I was free to find her. To make up for what I had done.

It didn't take me long, all I had to do was follow sound of the sobs. She was curled tightly into Gene's chest, hands covering her face. She was holding a piece of paper and I knew she'd read the letter I'd written for her in Holland.

* * *

Gene looked at me for a moment and then back at Beau. His kissed her softly on the forehead, getting up to leave.

She didn't acknowledge me at all. Well, if she thought I was dead, she wouldn't have. She kept her hands over her eyes, where I saw the faint glimmer of a ring in the moon light. She'd said yes.

Guilt suddenly ripped through me. It was tearing me apart inside. My whole body hurt, it ached to comfort her. My arms longed to hold her, to still the rocking of her body, to wipe the tears from her eyes, to hold her cold hands in mine and to kiss the lips I so dearly missed. But my legs wouldn't allow it, and suddenly I got the numb feeling in my body again. I froze, thinking I was still laying on the table in the basement, but no. There was the clouded breath that escaped my lungs from parted lips. There was the heartbeat, that thundered in my chest, waiting to break free, to settle in the same chest as hers.

"I told you not to cry for me."


	21. Now You Know How I Felt

**Now You**** Know How I Felt.**_  
_

****Blegh! I think this is going to be the last chapter for a while, but I am still writing it. I just want to write something else, so maybe I'll get started on my Merlin story.. if I can be arsed.. I've got a rough draft for a story for The Pacific, so that may crop up after Christmas.. PLUS, there's a special Christmas chapter for my previous story **Frontline Girl**, because I promised to do a follow on/ epilogue thing.

Anywho, this is a shorter chap and it's a bit shit.. but I hope you enjoy. Reviews don't hurt to write and I do actually like to know what people think

Enjoy me amigos!

Allie

* * *

_Night of January 2nd.  
_

When I saw him standing there, in front of me, I nearly died myself. He was just standing there, watching me with this pained look on his face. At first I thought he wasn't real, that I was imagining the whole thing. But then, when I saw his breath turn to little white clouds of steam, I knew it was real. My heart, at first, began to explode with unimaginable happiness, but it stopped itself. My sorrow had turned to happiness, but that was short lived. Anger burnt through my veins, ate at my brain, and I exploded into a rage, that deep down, I had wanted to say to him.

"You're a lousy shot! A fucking lousy shot!" I screamed at him. My whole body hurt, with the cold and sobbing, but my heart hurt most. "I told you! I told you I hated it and you thought it was funny! Well it wasn't! I watched you die! How do you think I felt, when you died in my fucking arms?!"

He looked at me, face set in stone. He never moved an inch, even when I hit him. I didn't even feel myself do it. My hand curled into a ball and it connected with his jaw.

"Beau-"

"NO! Don't you dare call me that! I've been here hours, crying over you! I've almost pulled my heart out, wondering why I could help Julian and not you! I blamed myself for this! You don't have the right to call me that any more. My name is Molly-Anne Beauclaire! Not Beau!"

My legs suddenly gave out from underneath me, and I fell into a heap on the snow, crying again. As my tears fell, so did the snow. Heavy feathers of frozen rain, drifted around me, trying not to touch me in my time of agony.

In front of me, the snow crunched, and my head forced itself up, as Hoobs knelt before me.

"Whatever I say, won't make what's happened go away... but you were right. Lip took the gun away and frankly I don't want it back... I know, that... it's going to be a while, before you can forgive me, and honestly I don't blame you if you don't want to... but... I'm an idiot.. and you're the best person out here to make sure I don't do anything else stupid.."

I looked up at him, letting out a shaky breath I hadn't known I was holding. He wrapped me up in his warm, wholesome arms, making me feel like I was in once piece again. Just like that I could forget that I was so angry, so close to pulling off my ring and throwing it into the snow.

Hoobs let his fingers absent-mindedly wander through my hair, curling through the ginger, dirty locks, as he held on to me for dear life.

"I'm not going to forgive you for this..."

"Good." he mumbled into my hair. "I don't want to forget how much I hurt you..."

"I'm not going to let you."

* * *

For the next few days, we never left each other's sides. Of those who had seen what had happened, they thought it was understandable. Least we weren't shoving our tongues down each other's throats every 5 minutes, right? Others, however, thought we were being too clingy. 'Others' being Dike the Dick. He made me stay in Skip and Pink's fox hole for one night.

"Sunny, he's not going to do anything stupid..." Pink shivered. Poor guy looked like he was dancing.

"I know.. but I just can't help worrying.." I replied, shaking with cold myself, as I glanced behind me, over the top of the fox hole.

* * *

The next day, we were all busy reinforcing our fox holes, when the German's hit. Shells cascaded from the sky, ripping up trees, tearing the earth apart, bursting ear drums with the sheer force of the blast. I'd taken cover with Shifty, not far from Malark and Bill's fox hole. We waited, with unsteady heaves of our lungs, as the shelling stopped. Lip went and called for everyone to stay in their holes, but as he passed, I heard the faint cry of a wounded man. I couldn't tell who it was just from the voice, but when Bill jumped up out of the fox hole he was in, I knew it was Joe Toye.

Slapping Shifty's hands away, I darted after Bill, eventually finding him trying to drag Joe to safety.

* * *

"Sunny! What the hell are you doing here?!" He asked crossly.

"I'm a medic, genius, I'm supposed to be here." I snapped.

"I gotta get my helmet!" Joe cried out, trying to pull away from his friend. Joe's leg had been completely blown off at the knee and he must have been in extreme pain, but I couldn't do anything until we'd got him to a fox hole. It was only a matter of time until the Germans began to shell us again, and we had to get him back.

"I'll get it later Joe, okay, just right now, we need to get you some place safe. Alright?"

Joe nodded, wincing, never complaining.

"I told you I'd get back to the States before you!" he cried out in pain again, trying to take his mind off of his missing limb.

"You ain't going no where Joe!" Bill told him.

That's when the shelling started again. Joe started shouting something about his helmet. Just behind Bill, was Buck. He was standing before his fox hole, shouting for us to hurry up, before we got caught in the blast. Joe was having none of it. He wanted his helmet.

"Bill, can you manage him?" I yelled over the noise. He shouted something back which sounded like 'yes', before I took off, running back the way we came.

All it took, was a few seconds before I'd picked up Joe's helmet and started running again, but it didn't do me any good.

The blast from a near by explosion hurled me to the floor, embedding large wooden splinters into my body, as I dropped to the ground. My hand still gripped tightly, onto Joe's helmet, even as my vision blurred violently. It went dark and quickly became silent, but everything soon rebooted.

* * *

I don't know what I was thinking, I'd suffered a pretty bad concussion as it turned out. I still got up and I still made my way to Joe and Bill. I stumbled, almost blindly, through the dense trees and destruction, finally finding them.

At first Bill, Joe, Malark and Gene didn't notice. It wasn't until Lip and George began to stare at me, that any of them looked at me.

"Holy shit..." George mumbled. I didn't understand what he was talking about, because at the time, I was in shock, a little more so than he was. In fact, 'holy shit' was the only thing that came out of his mouth for a few days, or so I'm told.

"Sunny..." Lip mumbled.

"I brought your helmet Joe."

"Sunny, come on.. sit down, right here, right with Ol' Bill."

"Luz, go get Spina and Hoobler. Now!"

I collapsed to my knees before I could get to Bill. I fell on to my side, struggling to breathe with every heartbeat and I drifted in and out of consciousness, before I figured Hoobs was by my side. There was blood every where, but I couldn't figure out where it was coming from, until I coughed, and he wiped it from my lips.

* * *

He's holding my hands now, like I did for him, a few days before. I know they're talking to me, but I just can't understand them.

* * *

"You know Gene, I never thought I'd die twice."

He looks at me in terror, silently praying that it's not my last confession. He says he didn't think I'd make it up Currahee, but I did, so I could make it through this, he says. Feeling my mouth curl, I look at Hoobs, before I feel my eyes begin to slide shut.

"Now.. you know.. how I... felt."


	22. Until We Bleed

**Until We Bleed.**

****_Lights black; heads bang  
You're my drug  
We live it  
You're drunk, you need it  
Real love, I'll give it  
So we're bound to linger on  
We drink the fatal drop  
Then love until we bleed  
Then fall apart in parts_

_Kleerup - Until We Bleed.  
_

* * *

Not having Beau around was strange. It was the most alien feeling I'd had over the past few years. She'd always been with us and now everything was deathly quiet without her around. Even more so, after Skip and Pink died. Apparently, an 88 had hit their fox hole, killing the two instantly. Malarkey was devastated to say the least. They were his best friends, and so was Buck. Now he'd lost them all. The only thing he had left to remember them by, was the remains of Skip's rosary, which George found and gave to him.

Pink was like a brother to Beau, sometimes I was sure she loved him more than me, and I knew this would crush her. I knew that she would wish she had done something, although I didn't think there was much she could have done, though I know she would have tried any way.

"Hey Malark." I greeted my flame haired friend. He was sat alone in his fox hole, staring at the cross George found. He looked at me for a fleeting moment, before his attentions drew back to the broken rosary.

"I heard you wanted a Luger to take home, for your kid brother?"

His head snapped up, staring at me for a moment, "Yeah, yeah I did.."

"Well, here. Take him this." I told him. I carefully pulled the gun out of my pocket, handing it over to my good friend.

"But this is yours..." he replied, holding it like it was made out of glass.

"You really, honestly think she's going to let me keep this thing after what happened to me?" I smirked. He smiled back wearily.

"I think she'd shoot you."

"I don't doubt that.." I smiled, pausing, "You know, you should go talk to her about it."

Malark rolled his eyes, "Hoob, she completely out of it."

"Not all the time she's not. Besides, even if she can't hear you, it's still better to talk to her. Get things off your chest that you can't when you talk to us."

He nodded thoughtfully, "You've got a point.. I dunno.. she needs to rest Hoob, then she can come back here."

* * *

As it turns out, he did go to see my little red headed girl. Everyone and anyone could talk to her, about anything and most people actually did. Even Spiers had been to see Beau before.

"_Jeeze, I could make a living out of this. You lot have more problems than math does." _ she once announced in England, after almost half the company had been to talk to her about their problems.

I couldn't help but laugh to myself when I remembered all the things she'd said and done since I'd known her. As I shook my head, Smokey called to me from a few fox holes away. I stopped, turning around and waiting for him to get closer, before I started to walk again.

"Hey, Hoob, I was jus' wonderin'... How's Sunny? I mean.. me an' Mo, when we heard what had happened.. and to Bill and Joe..."

"She's okay, drugged up to her eye balls and bandaged up like a mummy.. but she's good."

Smokey smiled, glad to know that she was doing okay, but he looked like he had something on his mind.

"You miss her, right?"

"Sure I miss her... what are you getting at?"

"Well.. I'm not tryin' to be an ass or nothin'... it's just..."

"I don't look like I care?" I asked, pointedly, frowning at my friend. He rubbed his chin awkwardly.

"Well.. yeah.."

"Look, of course I miss her. I think about her all the time and I worry about how she's doing, but I know where she is, I know she has Bill and Joe and I know she's some place they can look after her and fix her up. I know she's safe there.."

"I know, I know, I understand.. I didn't mean to-"

"Smoke, it's fine, don't worry about it."

There was a heavy silence between us for a moment, before he spoke again, "We're all hoping she pulls through, you know. She's been with us this long. She's like our personal mascot.. it's not the same without her here."

I nodded, "I know what you mean.. I saw Winters earlier, seemed pretty miserable. She always made an effort to go see 'em, see how they were all doing?"

"Yeah, she used to come past my fox hole in a morning, say hi to us, ask us how we were..."

We talked for a little while longer, before we parted company. Thought I didn't care.. anyone who thought that had to have more than one screw loose. I mean, of course I worried, I just knew she was in the best place and really, what could I do for her, other than to go and see her when I could?

* * *

"Hey, Beau, I came to see you before you got evacuated to the hospital. I won't be able to see you for a while, seeing as we're going to take Foy.. they'll probably send us somewhere else after that..." I told her in a whisper, taking a seat next to her sleeping body. Taking in her unconscious form, I looked quickly around the aid-station. Joe and Bill were having their own little conversation, Malark was reading to Buck. Most other guys were sleeping, because of the morphine, so it was real quiet. I smiled, listening to her mumble in her sleep. I turned back, but I could hear something more than mumbling. Her breathing was shallow, and came in large wheezes. They were so loud, a nurse came over from across the tent.

She took one look at Beau and asked me to move, telling another nurse to get a tube and some water in a glass. Hastily putting up a screen, she only told me she'd call me back when Beau had been sorted out.

I bit down on my lip, getting the metallic taste of blood on the tip of my tongue as I waited impatiently.

"Hey, Hoob, what's going on?" Malark asked, as I wandered around. By this time, Bill and Joe were listening in too. I merely shrugged; I had no idea, but I prayed that it wasn't serious. There was a little movement behind the make shift screen and before long, the nurse came out, approaching me and Malark.

"There's nothing to worry about, we just had to drain her lungs, but she'll be fine. We'll check in on her every hour, but call us if something doesn't seem right." she smiled. To be entirely honest, I didn't think smiling was the best thing to do at that point, my girlfriend was laying in a hospital bed, half blown to shit and having to have her lungs drained because... well because of something, I just wasn't entirely sure. The point is, I really didn't appreciate her Hollywood smile at that moment.

"Oh, by the way," she said, as she began to walk away when I didn't return her smile, "She's half out of it, but she's asking for you."

* * *

I didn't hesitate. My place was at her side and I'd not leave it unless I had to. I sighed, holding her hand as I sat down.

"You look tired." she told me, talking as loud as she could. She lacked lustre, it was sad to see her this way. Every bit of her looked dull and pale, compared to her vibrant and bold usual self.

I shrugged, "I'm better than you..."

"Yeah.. I look like shit."

"I second that."

"One day... I am going to really, really, seriously harm you.. or maim you..."

"Really?"

"Yeah.. you're lucky I didn't kill you... to be honest, it would have been a waste of time, bringing you back to life."

"I'm so glad you care..."

She tried not to laugh, and ended up coughing so violently, I thought bits of her lungs were going to come out. A nurse looked over, just as she slapped my arm. She was so weak, it was like she was on deaths door.

* * *

Beau didn't say much that was intelligible after that, just kept mumbling to herself about something from her old life. The only thing I really heard and kind of understood, was 'I'm too young'.

I didn't know if she meant to die, because she'd already 'been there and done that' as she put it one day in Mourmelon, or if she meant she was too young to be with me. I know I'd put a lot of pressure on her for the future, having kids, getting married, growing old together... maybe that's what she mean. She would have told me, if she'd have felt that way though, wouldn't she? I sighed, looking at my watch, knowing I had to get back to the front.

"I gotta go, Beau... I'll see you later, when you come back, okay?"

I kissed her forehead and left the medical tent. It killed me to be away from her, but I had to, I'd got no other choice. Still, I was glad that I'd seen her before she'd got evacuated, so that put a smile on my face. Some of the guys didn't know what I had to smile for. I think some of the replacements who didn't know me so well, thought I wasn't really bothered by her not being here and in hospital, seriously wounded. Idiots. They didn't realise how mortifying it was, to be told to leave the love of your life, while she's coughing up 3 pints of blood, gigantic splinters protruding from every inch of her upper body. To have her lay in my arms, almost dying, having to wait outside, while the best medic you know is knee deep in her lungs and stomach. I had no idea whether she'd live or die and I look like I don't give a damn.

* * *

"I mean, what do they want me to do Joe? Break down and mope around like a teenage girl?" I sighed to Liebgott, as we sat eating our food. He sighed with a shrug.

"They jus' don't understand is all Hoob. Don't worry about it. We know how you feel about the whole thing. I mean, it's pretty obvious when you've been to see her; you smile for a while and then you look like a little kid who's lost his balloon."

I smirked, "Thanks Joe... you know.. sometimes I turn to talk to her and then I realise... I realise, she's not there... but sometimes I just... I just can't help myself, I talk to myself like I'm talking to her..."

"Maybe we should think about getting you sectioned..." he said, looking me up and down. I rolled my eyes at the skinny assed Jew.

"You'd be exactly the same if you were in the same situation Joe."

"I know Hoob. I know."


	23. We Belong Together

**We Belong Together.**

****Ugh, finally! A new chapter! Sorry for the wait ladles and jellyspoons. I hope you like this chapter, it's been a little ass to write. And sorry they've been so short of late. I'm being an angry teenager (for good reasons) anyway, enjoy this chapter! reviews are love (or tea and biscuits if you're like me)

* * *

Pounding down the snowy hill to the town of Foy was like an out of body experience. Shells went off left right and centre. Half of Easy was no where to be seen, and from what I had heard, they wouldn't be for a while. Dike had us huddled around him, taking cover behind a hay stack. Winters couldn't get him on the radio. The guy just froze up. If there's one thing you can't do in combat, that's one of 'em. We knew that ass hole would get us in to trouble.

Winters eventually sent Spiers down. That man was a God send, I'll tell you that for nothing. He came running down like a cat outta hell, told Dike he was taking over and led the company to victory.

* * *

I was sitting against a wall, when there was a crack from around the corner and suddenly everyone was ducking for cover.

"What the hell was that?" I asked, alarmed as Lip and Shifty came diving around the corner.

"Sniper." Lip breathed. I looked around the corner, and a few men lay on the muddy street, unmoving. We couldn't see where that bastard was, but Lip had the wise idea of running around and Shifty shooting him. Lip, Shifty, Pop-Eye and me all went up to where the sniper had been located. Shifty put a hole right between his eyes. I took back what I said about me giving him a run for his money. He gave the sniper a run for his money.

"It just doesn't pay for you to be shootin' at Shifty when he has a gun." Pop-Eye noted, nodding his head at the body as we stood looking at it. Beau was going to love this.

Speaking of Beau, I'd got a letter from Bill. She was more doped up than before, and half the time she was asleep. Apparently, her wound had gotten infected and they were just waiting for her to respond to the penicillin. All they could do was wait, and Bill wasn't a patient man.

* * *

"_All she fuckin' does is sleep. It's killin' us here Hoob. Every time she tries to wake up, they give 'er more morphine and penicillin. Poor kid doesn't know id it's night or day."_

I knew Bill wanted to see her safe. So did I.

* * *

For the next few weeks, we took a few more towns after Foy. We encountered some SS troops. They attacked Joe and his buddy in a barn when a shell went off. Joe shot them all. I wouldn't tell her that. In the last town, we ended up in a church. It was the first time in months that we'd been inside a building. Slept with a roof over our heads. I looked around the church. It was plain and simple, but it was warm. The nuns had brought the choir in to sing to us. They sang all sorts, a few German, a few English songs, but most were French. Then they sang something that I had heard before. In fact, it was a song all of Easy knew, especially the Toccoans.

* * *

_**Quand nous en serons au temps des cerises  
Et gai rossignol et merle moqueur  
Seront tous en fête  
Les belles auront la folie en tête  
Et les amoureux du soleil au cœur  
Quand nous chanterons le temps des cerises  
Sifflera bien mieux le merle moqueur **_

* * *

Beau would sing it some times, when she thought no one could hear her. She sang it to me some times. There was silence all through out the church, even Spiers looked up from his work to listen to the song that reminded us all of Easy's girl. There was sudden movement from in the corner to my right, and Babe stood up and stormed out. I glanced at Julian who was sat with him. He shrugged, so I followed him out.

* * *

"Hey! Hey, Heff, where you going kid?"

"She should be here Hoob! Sunny should be here, in this fuckin' church, not poked full of holes in hospital!" he cried. I blinked a few times, not sure what I could say at his distress.

"Heff, calm down okay! I know she should be here, you're not the only one who thinks so, but she went out to do her job. She's lucky she's not... not dead.. Babe.. I know you're upset, but I am too. The girl I plan on making a future with, isn't in that church, sitting with our friends, sitting with me. She's sick. Her wounds are infected and all I can do is wait and see if I get a letter telling me she's dead or alive."

He studied me for a moment and then nodded.

"I know.. I'm sorry.. I just.. it's not the same. She should be here."

I nodded, watched the kid as his head hung low. Each breath we took came out in little clouds of white steam, as we stood out in the cold air.

"Don't worry Heff, she's coming home soon. I can feel it."

* * *

After a few more days, we were moved into the 17ths old position in Haguenau. There we got hot food, our winter shoe packs, K-rations and all the things that we needed in Bastogne. We were also under a proper roof. The 1st platoon CP was a shit hole, but we tossed all the trash into another room, and used the basement as a kitchen. The best thing about being there, was we finally got showers and shaves.

The water wasn't hot, but it wasn't ice cold either. It would do. I scrubbed every inch of my body more times than I could count and I shaved twice, just to make sure all the facial hair was gone.

"_I hate kissing beardy men."_ I heard the echo of Beau's voice in my head when I kissed her back in Bastogne. I sniggered, rubbing the soap through my hair. It had grown longer since Mourmelon, but I didn't trust Joe after he massacred Beau's hair. Maybe Shifty would be a better person for the job.

I pulled the clean underwear on, which was heavenly, need I say more? We all had a fresh, clean uniform and it smelt good too. Anything smelt good after the shit we rolled in. My new uniform hung off me slightly. I think everyone had lost a good few pounds during Bastogne.

I was walking out, down the road with my towel over my head, drying my longer hair, when I heard someone call my name. I paused in my step, wondering who was shouting me, until I realised who the voice belonged to. I slowly pulled the damp towel from my head, and I turned slightly.

I blinked, not registering who the person was, until they came flying into my arms, pushing her lips to mine. I smiled against them; my Beau was back.


	24. Enough For A Piggyback?

**Enough For A Piggyback?**

****Hoo mama.. I've started to notice my stories and chapters are getting darker.. I do apologise guys, shizzle is going down at home and I'm not in the best of places .. Read the bit in italic, imagine how youd feel if it was you. Then you'll get an idea of what I feel like. Ahh man..

Anyway! Enough depression! I hope you'll like this chapter. I got side tracked. i thought Beau had a lot of memories from Bastogne, I decided to put one in from her past life. Enjoy bros!

* * *

"_What?!" I yelled at my mother in the kitchen. It was a Saturday morning, bright, sunny, but cold. My mother had just told me my 15 year old cousin was 5 months pregnant. She'd kept it from our family, but she'd started getting fatter and we all began to notice._

"_She's having a baby."_

"_But she's just a baby!"_

"_I know, but we'll just have to be there for her-"_

"_Are you kidding me?"_

"_No dear I'm not."_

_I paused, staring at my mum. I collapsed into a chair at the table not knowing what to do._

"_What are they going to do?"_

"_Well, what can they do?"_

"_Get it adopted."_

_My mother looked at me, like I had just said the most spiteful thing in the world. She slapped me, hard across the cheek. I scowled, as the painful strike began to welt on my face._

"_How yo say that? Would you be able to give up a chile, your own chile? What would you do, if you got pregnant now?"_

"_I would do what was best for me."_

"_And what would that be?"_

"_I don't know." _

_She looked at me with a smugness that I wanted to pull off of her face._

"_She should have been careful."_

"_You've done the same thing. You slept with Mickey and didn't use protection and then you went to the clinic." she accused, snidely._

"_You're off your fucking head you! Yeah, I did, but at least I was on the fucking Pill for a fucking start! And at least I went to the fucking clinic afterwards! And I went to check for STDs thanks!" I almost screamed. My dad stood in the door way to the front door, not knowing what to make of this battle._

"_If you'd used something, you wouldn't have had to go."_

"_At least I fucking went!"_

"_Watch your God damn tongue with me youn' lady!"_

"_Why?! She gets away with it! She back chats, runs away, speaks to people like shit, and now she's pregnant!"_

"_Don't you think her mother is upset about this too?"_

"_Yes of course I do, but what the fuck does Harry care? Huh? She fucking doesn't! She's a spoilt brat and now she's ruined her education! She won't get a job, her boyfriend's a lazy piece of shit and she's going to drop all the baby shit onto her mum!"_

"_She needs support!"_

"_Fuck that! She needs her fucking head sorting out that's what! I knew she'd do this! If I was pregnant, you'd fucking kill me! I would be out on my arse quicker than you can snap your fingers and you're saying she needs support? She still fucking needs baby sitting!"_

_Once again my mother slapped me, and I was knocked to the floor by the force. I felt a trickle of blood in the corner of my mouth. I looked up at her from my position on the floor. She looked at me, coldly. This was it. I rose with as much dignity as I could muster and went silently back to my room._

_It had always been one rule for her and another rule for us. She had to have everything, had to be the centre of attention. I was always the responsible one, I never set a foot wrong, but I could never do anything right, never. I was tired. If I had been the one, pregnant, she wouldn't have spoken to me. I would be disowned, by all of my family. I was the one with all the expectations, but I was the one who let them down all the time. Apparently Harriette never set a fucking foot wrong._

_I'd started smoking when I was 16 and I got a bollocking off my mother. I still did it. That was the only thing I did that was really not good. Harry was up the duff at 15. I mean, if that was me, my mother would have ripped my ovaries out._

_So I destroyed my bedroom in pure, red hot anger. I ripped the sheets of my bed, pulled the wall paper off the walls, smashed my wardrobe, put a hole in the wall, pulled my books to pieces, broke my t.v., snapped my CDs and D. , ripped all my posters in half and more. I shoved my favourite clothes into my dad's old sea bag from his army days, shoved on his old army jacket and climbed out on the balcony, where my fire escape ladder was. I left and went to the only place I felt sane. Lou's._

_She was my best friend in the world. Her home was a safe haven for me, when I needed it. She was the only one who knew what to say, if I wanted advice. I knocked on the door, sopping wet with no voice after I'd lost it, screaming as I tore up my room._

* * *

Just as she was about to open the door, the Jeep jolted, waking me from my perturbed slumber. I rubbed my eyes as we came to a stop. The town Easy was in, was called Haguenau. Huge shower tents loomed on the street in between the house, well away from the firing line.

I thanked the driver, as he helped me pull my bag from the back. I wasn't 100%, and there were things I couldn't lift. My bag was one of them. My uniform was too uncomfortable to wear over the top of my bandages; it pulled and scratched them. I just chucked on my old clothes. I looked really out of place in black leggings, an over sized Rammstein top, converse and a grey hoodie. And that day, not a single fuck did I give.

As I was dragging my heavy bag along, I saw Web. So, the lucky bastard had come home. I grinned and waved at him, and he came over with a smile, followed by another, young man. The young man was stiff, uptight and had the air of an officer who'd just come from training. I set my bag down next to my feet and opened my arms out for a hug. Web gladly returned the gesture; it seemed like the boys were giving him a hard time.

"Web! It's been so long!" I beamed, reluctant to let go. He smiled, almost sadly.

"I know.. I missed a lot, right?"

"Are they bullying you?"

"Not as such..."

"Ahh, playing the guilt trick. Hmm, well, we'll just have to see what they do when I start fighting in your corner." I winked, turning to the officer. "Who's your buddy Web?"

"Uh, this is lieutenant Henry Jones. West pointer. Sir, this is Molly-Anne Beauclaire, or as we call her Sunny."

I smiled, holding out my hand to him, "And I advise you to do like wise, sir."

Jones smiled politely at me, taking my hand, "So, you're the little miss who has everyone talking. I can only say, I have heard more than good things about you."

I felt a blush creep up, and I dug my face into my hoodie's collar, like I usually did.

"Thank you." I mumbled into my favourite clothes.

"Um.. Sunny... did you.. ah... did you hear about..."

"Skip and Pink? Yeah, Lip wrote us... I don't know what to say.. I wish I could have been there for Malark.. they were his best friends... I should have been there.."

"I don't think there was anything you could have done..." Web told me solemnly. We stood in silence for a while, before I tried to edge round them, to find Hoobs.

"He's in the shower." Web told me, the ghost of a smirk on his lips.

"Was it that obvious?"

Web made a gesture, inching his thumb and forefinger together, "Little bit."

I rolled my eyes, "Sorry.. I haven't seen him for a while."

"He just went in..we'll wait with you if you want."

I smiled, hugging him again, "Thanks Web. I have a book, Charlie sent it me... will you read it to me, while I wait?"

* * *

I fell asleep in the middle of the second chapter. Web knew to take this as a sign of appreciation; if someone ever read to me, the only way that they'd know I enjoyed it, was if I fell asleep. What can I say, I've always loved being read to.

I was woken shortly after, by a nudging elbow in my ribs. I rubbed my eyes, looking around, dazedly and confused. Looking up at Web, he nodded his head at someone who'd just come from the shower. I glanced back at him and he told me it was Hoobs.

Before I knew it, his name had tumbled, almost clumsily, from my tongue. He stopped, turning to look around to see who was calling him. Not knowing what to do, I had help from Web, as he pushed me up from my seat.

I didn't even realize that I had hit the ground running, until I was in his arms, lips locked with his, arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer. It took him a few moments, but I could soon feel his smile against my lips as he kissed back.

"You're back!" he gasped, as we parted. I grinned up at him, pulling him into a hug.

"No shit Sherlock!"

He smirked, cupping my cheeks in his hands and kissing me on the nose. By the end of the night, my face was killing me from smiling so much.

* * *

"So, how much you missed me?" I asked, pulling on his hands as we stood outside the shower tent.

"A fucking lot."

"Enough for a piggy back?" He rolled his eyes and I giggled, "I'm sorry, I got lazy back in hospital."

He laughed, shaking his head and with a wink asked, "Not too lazy I hope."

I blushed, "Oi, I've only just come back and you're thinking about that! I've been deprived too, but I don't automatically go for that."

"Ugh, fine.. but I have missed you enough for a piggy back."

I grinned, hopping on his back as he turned around.

"Oh, wait, Web has my stuff!"

* * *

"Sunny!" came a hellishly loud chorus as Hoobs and I came into 1st platoon's CP. I grinned like mad, hugging everyone of my brothers.

"Did you miss me Roy?" I asked the stony faced man in the corner. He was stood by a great pile of firewood, looking like his usual brooding self. He simply shrugged.

"I might have missed you a little bit. It was quieter without you. More peaceful." he replied nonchalantly, rubbing his nose. I just smiled and threw myself at him for a hug. Contrary to popular belief, Roy Cobb is a really nice guy.

"Hey, woah, what are you- ah forget it." he grumbled, giving in and hugging me back.

I turned to look for the one person I hadn't hugged or seen yet, which is when he walked down the stairs into the basement.

"Malarkey!"

"Holy fuck!" he cried, as I tackled him, knocking the pair of us to the floor. I pushed my face into his chest, hugging him tightly, like I'd lose him too.

"I missed you!" I wailed into his chest, like a four year old. Shifty, Malark, Babe and George had to be my best friends in the world. He patted me on the back, not knowing what to do, as he looked at the rest of the guys.

"I'm sorry I'm such a crappy medic!"

"Wha-what are you talking about?"

"S-Skip and P-P-Pink!"

He automatically pulled my into him, tighter than he'd ever, ever held me before. He held me tighter than Hoobs ever had, come to think of it. We'd lost our brothers. They were his best friends. It was the motivation I needed to come back. I needed to be there for my boys, when the reality hit them.


	25. Still One of Us

**Still One of Us**

****Because I think Webster is treated a little harshly in this episode, I thought someone should stick up for him. Reviews are tea and cakes!

* * *

"Beau."

I groaned. I was too tired to get up. I had gone to sleep almost 10 minutes after I had come back, painkillers really put me out. There was more nudging, followed by more calls of my name.

"Whuuut?" I asked grumpily, cracking one eye open.

"C'mon, why don't you just go to bed?" asked Hoobs, with a small smile.

"I'm not tired."

"Oh, and I suppose you didn't fall asleep on Webster, huh?"

I looked around at Web, who looked at me to say 'yep, you fell asleep on me'.

"Did I drool?"

"I dunno, did you?" he asked, looking at his shoulder, where I presumably I had fallen asleep.

"How should I know, I was asleep!"

"Aha! So you admit it!" Hoobs grinned. I stuck my tongue out at him, slowly rising.

"Oh shut up. I'm going to sleep. If you know what's best for you; Don't. Wake. Me. Up."

The guys smiled at me as I walked up the stairs. Just as I disappeared from view, I called down to Web, "Shakespeare still sucks!"

* * *

I was tired, exhausted, knackered, every word you could think of for drained, I was just that. My arms and legs felt like they were made out of concrete and my eyes were starting to shut even before I got to the foot of the stairs. Suddenly, I was wrapped up in Hoobs' arms and he carried me bridal style to one of the rooms. Like the room I stayed in in Mourmelon, this room was sparse of furniture. I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, even though he tried to set me down on the bed.

"Beau, you gotta let go." he chuckled.

"Mmm! But then you'll leave." I complained tiredly.

"How about I stay then?"

"Yeah!"

He laid beside me, letting me put my head on his chest as I fell to sleep.

"If you drool on me, I'm getting up and leaving."

"No."

* * *

Over the next few days, I tried to spend as much time as I could with Malarkey. We'd been through a lot, the two of us and I felt like I had lost two brothers. Malark felt much the same and since Charlie wasn't here, I would try to cheer him up.

He was cooking at the little stove we had, and I was stood, trying to look over his shoulder. He looked around at me once, twice, three times, wondering what I was doing.

"Sunny... what are you doing?"

"Trying to see what you're cooking."

"Why didn't you just ask?" he asked, looking back at his cooking. I leaned to the side, to try and get a better look.

"I wanted to see for myself. You might have been lying."

I watched him scowl at the pot, with the ghost of a smirk playing on his mouth.

"And what might I have said it was? Bacon?"

"Rule 4: don't ever joke about Bacon."

"Oh, I forgot about that rule."

"We've been over this you mick. It's blasphemous to joke about Bacon."

"I'm sorry Sunny."

"What are you talking about?" Lieutenant Jones asked, completely, utterly bamboozled.

"Bacon, according to Sunny, is proof that there is a God, sir." Web told him, from the corner. The boys were all getting ready for a patrol. I was to stay behind with Malark, Jones would go as an observer and Web would go to translate. Jones looked from me to Web, before he went back to his gun.

"Here," Malark said, nudging me to turn around. I raised my eyebrows as I came face to face with a spoon full of Irish Stew. "Try this."

"Why do I have to try it?" I questioned, frowning at the offending object.

"Because you're the closest."

"To what? The sink so I can spit it out?"

"Funny." he replied, giving me a disapproving look. "Just try it."

I looked once more at the spoon, before I ate the proffered food on it. It burnt my tongue, the roof of my mouth and my throat.

"Ahhhh!" I cried, letting my tongue loll out of my mouth so I could waft cool air on it. Some of the guys looked up to see what I was doing, before they shook their head. Apparently it was just typical me.

"That was too hot!"

"Well, I _am_ sorry, Goldielocks, maybe you should blow on it next time."

"Fuck you Malark. I'm telling Charlie. She's my best friend and she can with hold sexy time from you."

He raised his eye brows, widening his eyes a little.

"You wouldn't.."

"I would."

"No.."

"You know she would Malark, don't pretend she wouldn't." Johnny called from the table.

I know it shouldn't have, but it really did surprise me how much someone would do, just because they were deprived of sex.

* * *

The night of the patrol loomed over my head like a dark cloud. I was scared for the boys. I had the right to be scared, as it turned out.

I was upstairs, writing a letter to Charlie and the gang, when the doors down stairs were almost knocked off their hinges and someone screaming was pulled in.

"Beau!" came Hoobs' voice. I didn't hesitate. I ran straight down the stairs, throwing myself into the midst of paratroopers.

"I'm here!"

I didn't need to be directed. On the table before me, lay the shredded form of Eugene Jackson, writhing away in pain, screaming in agony. Vest, who was good friends with Eugene, was panicking, and he wasn't making it any better for poor Eugene.

"Alright, Bull, I want everyone but Web out of this room. Now. You got it?"

Bull nodded, "EVERYONE OUT NOW!" he yelled. The room went silent, all that could be heard was Eugene's whimpering.

Web went to leave, but Bull put a large hand on his shoulder, "Not you College Boy."

Web looked at Bull, then at me and Eugene.

"I need you to help me keep him calm. He seems to respond better to you."

While Web calmed him down, I looked over his wounds. The room was calmer, and there was no pressure on me to perform and save his life in front of all our friends. I didn't have to face them all if it didn't work.

My hands skirted the worst wounds, picking out the chunks of grenade, healing the holes where they used to be. He stopped convulsing, his breathing returned to some kind of normality and the worst was over.

"See how brave you are Eugene? Look, all gone now, okay? You were very brave, right Web?" I soothed him, stroking his hair, before I looked at his other wounds. Web nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, really brave. You just hang tough kid, we'll get you properly fixed up at the aid station."

I smiled at Web; no one knew how good he was to people. They wouldn't ever know if they carried on the way they did.

* * *

The next day, while Web had gone out for a smoke, they were talking about him. I didn't think they realised I was listening to the conversation, until I piped up.

"You know what? I'm glad Web wasn't with us back there. He wouldn't have turned into bitter bastards like us."

"Sunny!" Joege almost cried. Jones looked up from his seat, as did Malark.

"No, don't Sunny me! You know how hard it is, to come back after all this time, seeing your friends turn you away, treat you like new meat? He was in Normandy, he was in Holland. So he wasn't in Bastogne. He's still part of Easy. He's still one of us."


End file.
